Father of Mine
by Wavebreeze
Summary: TT. A collection of drabbles/oneshots of touching and humorous moments between Gabe and Joshua. No necessary plotline but full of stories from when they are reunited and so forth. Better explanation inside. GabexLisa and some JoshuaxAlyssa.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note**

This is just a quick drabble about Gabe and Joshua reuniting. I am actually planning on making this a collection of short stories/drabbles about the pair. There isn't going to be a real plot to it, just short stories that talk about touching father son moments, from a span of when they are reunited (this chapter) to Joshua's high school graduation. So in a way in kind of has a hidden plot about them trying to overcome the separation and such. I just love both of them so much, especially how adorable Joshua, and I can't help but be obsessive.

Alright, I'll stop talking now, I hope you like it!

~~Wave~~

**Father of Mine **

Doctor Gabriel Cunningham dashes around the hospital, searching in every door he sees but never finding what he is looking for. He pokes his head into an on going surgery, a janitor's closet, both the women's and men's bathrooms, and all the patient rooms but keeps leaving them in a huff. His burnt out cigarette is clenched in his mouth and his fists shake by his side. Where is he?

In all of his haste, Gabe almost crashes into the skilled surgeon, CR-S01, as he flies around a corner. They fumble for a second, trying to get around one another as the prisoner mumbles, "S-sorry, Doctor Cunningham-,"

"No need for that, kid," Gabe cuts him off in an edgy voice, looking over his companion's shoulder anxiously but, like before, finds nothing of interest there. Still searching the hall with his wandering gaze, he asks, "Have you seen Joshua…you know…my son?"

He whispers the last part, fearful that the younger version of him might actually be around and hear these words.

"He's leaving the hospital today, he should be in the lobby on his way out now."

Even before he can finish the sentence Gabe is already sprinting down the hallway; a nurse barely has time to jump out of his way as he flies past her.

* * *

"Lisa!" Gabe cries out at the sight of his wife and his heart pounds in his ears, terrified at seeing her for the first time in ten years. She's about to walk out the hospital doors, speaking to a little boy beside her and she smiles down at him.

"Lisa!" The doctor yells again as he runs through the lobby. He stops short when his wife turns around to face the person calling him, Joshua looking over his shoulder too to greet him too.

Gabe's breath hitches in his throat at the sight of her beautiful face, he has forgotten how gorgeous she is and how people always teased him about her being out of his league. So many happy memories come rushing back, it's almost too much for him to handle. His mouth runs dry and his hands get sweaty. All he can think is that thank God RONI isn't here, she'd just love to point out all of these signs of terror.

A lavender dress clings to her slender figure and her big chocolate eyes blink in surprise at the sight of him. Her dark brown, curly hair ends at her shoulders and her pale face is flawless. Just like he remembers.

He notices how his wife's eyes grow wide at the sight of him but nothing more than that. She has always managed to have the best poker face, even after seeing her husband for the first time in so long it slips only a tiny bit.

"Hey, mom, this is the guy I was telling you about," Joshua breaks the silence between the two adults, tugging at his mother's hand and grinning childishly. "He figured out what was wrong with me and saved my life. But even cooler, he has the same last name as me, the same hair type, and even the same eye color. Weird huh?"

Lisa doesn't hear the comment, her husband's gaze transfixes her. He still looks the same as he always has, his dark green hair a huge mess on the top of his head and his orange suit is hidden partly by his lab coat. He used to be clean shaven but even from here she can see the small stubble along his chin and, even more surprising, a cigarette hanging out of his mouth. When did he start smoking?

"Hey, Joshua," Gabe addresses his son, finding his voice again and taking his eyes off of his wife. He takes a few steps forward and smiles at the kid, who grins back in return. "How are you feeling?"

"Great after you helped me."

"That's good to hear, are you leaving now?" Gabe clarifies, glancing at his wife but then focusing his gaze back on his son.

"Yep, I got the list of things I need to do right here," he says, waving a piece of paper that lists everything he needs in order to have a full and healthy recovery.

"That's good, good…" Gabe mumbles, preparing himself for what is to come with a deep breath. "I need to talk to your mom for a moment…privately…so can you wait here for a second, please?"

Joshua nods eagerly and lets go off his mother's hand, who can't help but send Gabe a confused look. Her husband scratches his chin, obviously on edge, and starts walking down the hall and around a corner, his wife following him reluctantly. Once out of ear shot and hidden from view, she doesn't even get a chance to speak before he whips around and declares, "I want time with Joshua."

She's taken a back by the comment, it leaves her standing there with her mouth hanging open and blinking her brown eyes in surprise. "What…" she whispers in shock but Gabe is quick to fill in the tense silence that follows.

"I know it's crazy," he starts to reason with her, shaking his head as if trying to rid such ridiculous thoughts. "But…after seeing him for the first time in so long I…I-I really want to be with him again."

Gabe looks at his wife with pained ochre eyes. She used to be proud of the fact that this witty and normally rude man was so open with her but now she is just perplexed by him. He never even said why he left.

"You left your family, Gabriel," she sighs, closing her eyes and rubbing her forehead. Suddenly, she feels drained and on the verge of tears. She had forgotten how much she loved his rough, deep voice. Her son always reminds her of her husband's appearance but, seeing him here now, is so much more powerful and it sends her on an emotional rollercoaster of sorrow, betrayal, rejection, and love. Oh how she has missed him.

"I know, Lisa, and if I could I would go back in time and never leave I would," he apologizes rapidly but the woman cuts him off. She jerks her head up and stares at him, the amount of hurt in her eyes is enough to make Gabe feel like the worst person ever.

"So you just want to jump back in Joshua's life?" She snaps, venom slipping into her disconsolate tone. "And then what? You just leave once more? I don't want to be the one to try and make Joshua feel better again after the one person he wants the most abandons him. I've already been doing it for ten years, don't make it any worse."

She turns away, ready to head back to her son, but Gabe grabs her arms and spins her back around.

"Please, Lisa," he implores, staring at her with hopefully. "I know I've made a lot of mistakes but I won't anymore, I won't abandon him. You know how much he wants a father."

She sighs and closes her eyes. She needs to leave her husband quickly, the tears are already threatening to form and she hates crying in front of anybody.

"Listen," she says quietly, making Gabe have to lean in a bit closer to hear. She takes in a deep, shuddering breath before whispering, "I'll think about it." Then she tugs her arm away from him and quickly walks away, round the corner and out of view, leaving her husband to stand there hopelessly and longingly staring at the spot where she had previously been.

* * *

Gabe is interrupted from his nap by the sound of a phone blaring in his ear. After pretty much being rejected by Lisa, he had went home and fell into a restless sleep, trying to escape the pain and guilt he feels. As he sits up on the couch, stretching his sore limbs and letting the phone ring, he already misses his son. When will be the next time he sees him? Will he ever see him again? What about Lisa? Maybe that's her on the phone…

At the thought, Gabe instantly snatches the phone in hopes it is his wife. "Hello?" he greets eagerly.

"Hey, Gabe, it's me," Maria says from the other line and Gabe sighs loudly, slouching back on the couch.

"Ouch!" Maria chuckles, "No need to sound so down, what's the problem?"

"Nothing," he instantly responds, more bitter sounding than he intended. "What do you want?"

"Well I'm getting ready to head off to downtown, the paramedics need me, though I'm going to need a place to stay afterwards."

"Huh? Why!" Gabe snaps, looking around at his terribly messy apartment. The coffee table before him is littered with empty bags of chips and beer cans, along with an ashtray so full of cigarettes that it looks like a pyramid. His kitchen table is like that too…along with the floor…and the bathroom. Crap.

"Why!" Maria exclaims as she turns on her motorcycle, the engine roaring to life. "Did you not just see that huge tornado fly through the city? Almost every house has lost power and a ton of buildings are destroyed, some of them – like mine – are deemed unstable and I can't stay there tonight until they fix it."

Gabe looks up and notices that his lights are still on. He must be one of the few people with power.

"And you need to stay at my place because…?"

"Because you live on one of the few streets with power, idiot! Clean up your place a bit before I come over there, I need to get going, see you later!"

The second the phone goes dead it starts ringing again and Gabe groans. Please don't' tell me…

"Hello," he mumbles blearily, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"Hey, it's Tomoe -,"

"And you need a place to stay," Gabe finishes for her, standing up and heading for a trash bag.

"Yep," she chirps from the other line.

"See you in a few," the doctor reluctantly agrees and ends the call, preparing himself for a very rapid and messy clean up.

Two hours later and Gabe's apartment now acts as a refuge. Tomoe and Hanzou are the first ones to come and, thankfully, they offer to help clean. With Tomoe's urge to follow the path of honor and both of them being ninjas, the place becomes spotless in less than five minutes. The floor is vacuumed and the tables scrubbed down. The trash is all gone and some special Japanese air fresheners have been scattered throughout the house to cover the stench of smoke and they work surprisingly well.

They finish just in time before the next guests arrive: Naomi, Little Guy, and Alyssa. Naomi lets him know that she can live without electricity but, unfortunately, she needs to work on her case, which requires analyzers and her laptop. Naomi and Little Guy gather on the couch and begin working diligently as Tomoe and Gabe entertain Alyssa. Normally the diagnostician wouldn't waste time with a kid, but it reminds him of Joshua and he has to admit, Alyssa is really cute.

Hours pass with just the six of them enjoying the quiet evening, but things get a bit more riotous when Maria and Hank soon show up at the door. The pleasant time they were all just sharing is instantly destroyed the second Maria enters the room. She slams her radio on the table, starts blasting rock music, and screams, "PARTY!"

While at first nobody decides to join her, Gabe's apartment soon actually does become a party. A few other friends come over, like the Chief and Claire, but most of them Gabe has never met. He soon finds himself hosting a party, something he has always hated doing because it requires a lot of effort on his part. He's forced to give up some of his beer and the few items of food he has to keep the people happy. The only reason he hasn't kicked them out yet is because Tomoe keeps pestering him about the path of honor but he's more concerned with the fact that she's a ninja.

With the blare of Maria's rock music and the din of conversation, he's surprised none of his neighbors have bothered him. They are probably still trying to wrap their minds around the fact that lazy Gabe is hosting a party.

Just when the doctor feels like he's going to crack, the phone rings again. He groans loudly, assuming it's another person looking for refugee, but answers nevertheless before Tomoe can accost him.

"Hello, he grumbles, covering his other ear to keep out the noise.

"G-Gabriel?" A familiar voice stutters from the phone, sounding nervous and worried.

"Lisa!" He exclaims while quickly rushing into his bedroom, a quieter area, and says in a much softer tone, "What's up?"

She takes in a deep breath, a sign that this phone call is very difficult for her, but she manages to continue on. "The tornado knocked the power out over here and part of our building collapsed. My friends are all without power or they are evacuating and the hotels are booked and we can't leave the city because the main roads are destroyed and…" she pauses for a moment, as if taking a respite from her stressing tone of voice, before asking awkwardly, "Joshua and I need a place to stay. Do you think you can help us out?"

Gabe hesitates, not because he doesn't want them, but because he can't believe how lucky he is now. He also wonders how desperate she must be for her to call him. He is probably her last – _LAST_ – choice, things must be real bad out there.

"Yeah, definitely," he agrees, a bit too eagerly on his part. "You can come over whenever you want."

"Thank you, Gabriel," she sighs in relief before clicking the phone off and leaving her husband with a dead tone. He lets himself smile. He might be having some stupid party right now, but at least the house is clean…for the most part.

He spends the next twenty minutes hovering by his window, gazing through the blinds and waiting for the two people he cares about most to jump out of every car that comes by. He's grateful nobody notices that he's been staring out of a window for a long time, or maybe they don't care, but he's happy either way that nobody pesters him as he leaves the room and to the lobby.

He meets Lisa and Joshua there, feeling his heart flutter and his stomach tighten at the sight of them. Lisa is still as beautiful as she was this morning but her face is creased with worry lines and her eyes are deep with concern. A large backpack is slung over her shoulder and a sleeping bag is in her free hand. Joshua stands beside her, about half of her height, and waves cheerfully at his former doctor. His big eyes sparkle under the lobby's lights and his dark green hair looks fuzzier than his father's. He never gets over the fact that they look so alike.

"Hey, guys, are you both okay?" Gabe asks with concern as he steps closer to them, his keen eyes scanning up and down their bodies for any bruises, cuts, or other abnormal signs.

"We're fine, just had part of our apartment building scratched away," Lisa sighs, stress making her exhausted. "Thankfully it wasn't our room that got torn."

"Well you are welcome to stay here as long as you want," Gabe offers and Lisa nods in appreciation, staring at him with her mesmerizing chocolate eyes. It makes him feel tiny under her powerful stare, it seems that she has gotten over her initial shock and is back to the witty and strong person that he had fallen in love with.

"Thanks for helping us out so much, doctor," Joshua smiles up at the man that looks so much like him as they head towards the elevator. "It seems we keep bumping into each other."

"No problem," Gabe grins down at his son, ruffling up the boy's hair, which he notices is much softer and cleaner than his.

They get to the doctor's floor and, before they enter his apartment, he quickly informs them that he currently has at least twelve people staying for refuge and Maria has made it into a party. He let's them know that they are allowed to stay in his bedroom where it is quieter.

Inside, the apartment hasn't changed much. A Linkin Park song called "Bleed It Out" is blasting from the paramedic's radio and people are scattered throughout his living room in idle chitchat. Food that people brought over (though most of it belongs to Gabe) is spread out across the small wooden table and, behind that, members of the trauma team lounge about on the couch. Most of the people are standing around in small groups, sipping drinks out of their plastic cups and yelling over the music.

"Wow, Gabe," Lisa chuckles from next to him. "You never wanted to host a party till now, huh?"

She turns and grins mischievously at him as he chuckles, "Trust me, I am still bitter about these…_events_," he says the word with a shudder and she smiles at him.

Before either of them can say anything more, a familiar voice screams, "JOSHUA!" and then their son is tackled down by a short, brown haired woman who hugs the daylights out of him.

Maria clutches onto the ten year old, lifting him up and swinging him back and forth as if she's a little girl holding a teddy bear for the first time. Joshua's eyes grow wide and he looks desperately to his mother and Gabe, scared out of his mind.

"Maria!" Gabe barks at her but she continues hugging him till he can barely breathe and he tries desperately to pry her arms away.

"MARIA!" Gabe has to shout over the noise and he finally gets her attention, her green eyes glaring at him, probably ready to punch his face out. "Put the kid down! He just had surgery!"

"Oh God!" Maria gasps, letting go of the boy and, the second he lands on the ground, hides behind his unknown-to-him father. "I forgot about that. Sorry, he's just so cute!"

"I thought you found punching people's faces was cute," Gabe grins, a mischievous gleam lighting up his eyes, and his cigarette dangling loosely from his mouth.

"First of all," Maria starts, taking a step towards him and snatching the cigarette out of his mouth. "No smoking around kids. And secondly…" She nails a punch in Gabe's gut so he can't yell at her about taking away something so precious to him. He hunches over a bit, clutching his stomach as the rest of his family stare at the pair with wide, surprised eyes.

"You'll thank me later," Maria winks before running off to throw the disgusting item away as the man sneers at her.

Moments later, Hank strolls up to the trio and, though it's difficult to tell with his eyes closed, he's quite surprised to see the entire Cunningham family here.

"Aw, Lisa," he smiles pleasantly at Gabe's wife, her hand puny compared to his gigantic one as they shake hands. "It's great to see you again."

"As it is to see you," she smiles in return as Joshua stares up at the super huge man in front of him, his eyes narrowed, trying to imagine where he has seen this enormous man before.

"You look very familiar…" he mumbles and the adults turn their focus to the little boy. "Kind of like…" he hesitates for a moment before the thought finally comes to him. Snapping his fingers, he exclaims cheerfully, "that Captain Eagle guy!"

Gabe and Lisa instantly start laughing and Hank chuckles nervously, backing away slowly and mumbling incoherent words about kids and their fantasies. By the time the parents have recovered from their laughter, the big man is already gone.

Gabe leads them to his room and lets them place their stuff in there (he doesn't plan on staying in that area tonight), and then they head back out again to the party. The second they reenter the family room, Maria shouts from across the room, "That's him! Isn't he adorable!"

Maria, Hank, and Tomoe are gathered around the couch, each one either looking at Gabe in surprise for being with his family or staring at the adorable little boy hiding behind the doctor.

Sighing, the diagnostician walks towards them and plops on the couch, unaware that his wife and son are heading over too. Tomoe greets both of them for the first time as Maria ruffles the kid's hair, remarking how fluffy it is, and Hank glances around nervously. After a while of short conversation from them, Lisa sits down next to Gabe and her son rests beside her, discussing the music blasting from her radio with the other doctors.

Gabe acts like he doesn't notice her gaze as she stares at him, waiting for him to acknowledge her. After a few seconds, he glances her way and raises an eyebrow. A sly smile stretches across her face and she says pleasantly, "It has been a while, Gabriel, tell me how it has been with you for the past…eight or ten years."

The doctor hesitates, wondering if his wife is toying with him as she loves to do. After a moment, he lets out a deep breath and says casually, "Well…I started smoking after I left…um…my family," he mumbles, glancing towards Joshua but his son is fully absorbed in a conversation between the other doctors. Lisa nods, as if everything is normal between them and he didn't abandon her without explaining why. He pauses for a moment, reflecting back on his memory of those lonely and probably the worst ten to eight years of his life, and then admits, "Well, nothing really that exciting has happened, though I did help eliminate a deadly virus and what not…which caused me to be thrown out of a plane…oh, and I tricked the FBI into following me in a helicopter while their prisoner did an operation on Naomi's kid. I also got hit by a bus, which kind of hurt."

Lisa stares at him with her hazel eyes wide. Even her great composure can't hide her surprise at her husband's dangerous action. "Okay…" she mumbles, totally awed by what she just heard. "Do you mean the bus that crashed into the mall?"

Gabe nods and scratches his chin. "Yeah, that dumb thing. How do you drive _anything _into a building? If you see a wall in front of you, you don't run into it! Stupid people," he grumbles and Lisa chuckles from next to him.

"Well at least you are okay, though what was with the tricking of the FBI agents?"

And then Gabe spends the next ten or so minutes explaining to his wife how that event all went down, stopping to listen to the occasional cry of Maria or Joshua. The two are playing a game to see who can name the song that plays on the radio first.

Once that story is wrapped up, Lisa goes on to explain how she has been. She tells about Joshua's schooling, how he is a fantastic student whose lowest grade is a B+ (in art) and she talks a bit about her job. After a while, Gabe realizes that he is enjoying the casual conversation with his wife, even showing off one of his rare, charming smiles and trying not to make rude comments. He remembers all of the things that he loved about her, the little dimples when she grins, her big chocolate eyes staring up at him, and the sly smile that graces her pale, heart shaped face every once in a while. He likes the way she drinks from her plastic red cup, elegant and tiny little sips. The way she chuckles at things that most people would be frantic about or how, occasionally, a strand of dark brown curly hair will fall in her face and she'll gently bat it away.

But then Chief Esha pulls her away from him, taking her into a conversation about their jobs and catching up on old times. Lisa was always friendly towards everybody, so when she and Gabe split a lot of people at Resurgam were sad to see her go.

Gabe props his feet up on the coffee table, leaning back on the couch and pulling himself away from the women's conversation. He turns his gaze to his son, who is only a few feet away from him, eagerly listening to the doctors around him discuss a funny story that recently happened.

Dr. Cunningham smiles to himself, watching Joshua grin politely whenever addressed but being silent most of the time. According to Lisa, he's a bit of a shy kid but really opens up if you get to know him well.

The song that had just been playing suddenly changes to one with a powerful guitar and a man singing the words,

"_Father of mine, _

_tell me where have you been? _

_You know I just closed my eyes _

_and my whole world disappeared._"

"'Father of Mine' by Everclear," Joshua instantly calls out, getting out of his shy demeanor for a moment and sending a cute, small smile towards Maria.

"Aw, you won this round, bud," she admits with a grin, clapping him on the back. "You knew that one is seconds!"

The song continues to play behind them, blasting the words,

"_Father of mine,_

_Take me back to the day, _

_When I was still your golden boy back before you went away_."

Gabe shifts uncomfortably at the lyrics as Joshua explains to the paramedic's girl with a shrug, "It used to be my favorite song."

"Really, why?" Maria questions and Joshua blushes at this, glancing down at his feet and confessing,

"I can relate to it I guess…"

A huge hit of guilt punches Gabe in the heart, making his breathing come short and his mind fog with regret. They all go back to their previous conversation as if nothing has happened but Dr. Cunningham remains overwhelmed by what he just heard. He continues listening to the lyrics in hope that maybe the song gets better.

_"I remember blue skies _

_Walking the block _

_I loved it when you held me high, I loved to hear you talk. _

_You would take me to the movie _

_You would take me to the beach _

_You would take me to a place inside that is so hard to reach."_

Gabe doesn't find anything terrible there, just nostalgic memories.

_"Father of mine, tell me where did you go?_

_Yeah, you had the world inside your hand but you did not seem to glow._

_ Father of mine, tell me what do you see?_

_When you look back at your wasted life and you don't see me."_

Dr. Cunningham shifts around on the couch, sadly wondering if this is what his son really thinks of him.

_"I was ten years old, doing all that I could._

_It wasn't easy for me to be a scared white boy in a black neighborhood._

_Sometimes you would send me a birthday card with a five-dollar bill._

_I never understood you then and I guess I never will!"_

"Maria!" Gabe calls out, feeling his hands become sweaty and his stomach tightening at all the guilt that keeps being hurled at him. She doesn't hear him though, just continues talking as the music plays on.

_"Then he walked away…_

_Daddy gave me a name!_

_My daddy gave me a name!_

_Then he walked away…_

_My daddy gave me a name!_

_Then he walked away…_

_My daddy gave me a name!_"

"Maria!" Gabe shouts a little louder, causing his wife and Esha to send him confused glances. He ignores them, glad he finally has the attention of the green-eyed girl.

"What?" She snaps, placing her hands on her hips as she glares at him.

"Would you care to change the song please?" He asks casually, making his voice sound indifferent as usual. "It's giving me a headache."

Maria grins wickedly at him and pats her huge radio like it is her pet. "Sorry, buddy, this is the only radio station playing right now so you are going to have to deal."

Gabe groans and sends her a death stare for a second, before looking away and listening to the words again.

_"Father of mine,_

_Tell me where have you been?_

_Yeah, I just closed my eyes_

_And the world disappeared._

_Father of mine,_

_Tell me how do you sleep?_

_With the children you abandoned _

_And the wife I saw you beat!"_

Gabe rubs his temples, the music throbbing in his head as he thinks to himself, _at least I didn't beat Lisa._

But the line about abandoning his child hits home and he feels himself breaking inside. Fury races through him and he can't help but yell much louder this time, "MARIA! CHANGE THE DAMN SONG!"

This time he attracts a lot more unwanted attention, Esha, Hank, Tomoe, Maria, a few other random people, and Joshua all stare at him with confusion. Everybody is startled by his behavior except for Lisa, who sends him a sympathetic look and opens her mouth to speak but gets drowned out by Maria.

"What's your problem!" She snaps, sneering at him as the music continues to play.

_"I will never be safe,_

_I will never be sane._

_I will always be weird inside_

_I will always be lame."_

"Just…" he grumbles, shifting his piercing glare over everybody but his family members. "Shut up!" He retorts before flinging himself off the couch and storming away in a huff, the lyrics still blaring into his ears.

"_Now I'm a grown man,_

_with a child of my own._

_And I swear, I'm not gonna let 'em know_

_All the pain I have known!"_

"Just shut up!" He repeats as he swings the door open and slams it on his way out of the apartment.

The second the door closes he releases a deep breath and shuts his eyes, happy to be away from that clamorous room full of obnoxious songs. He lets himself wait to get his heart rate down and his mind to become clearer before walking to the end of the hall. He passes the other apartment doors, still surprised that nobody has complained about the noise yet, and stops in front of a large clear window that opens up to the city below him. He can only see buildings that are a few roads around him, anything else is completely black due to the lack of power and starless night sky.

He closes his eyes and listens to the sound of somebody opening up a door from a ways behind him. He hears the swell of music and chatter flow out of it for a second but it is cut off by the door closing with a soft thud. He listens to the quiet footfalls of somebody walking up to him. He knows who it is, it may have been a long time since they have been together, but he hasn't forgotten a thing.

"Is that what he really thinks of me?" He whispers, his eyes still closed and his hands stuffed in his pockets. "Does he think that I just gave him a name and left?"

"In all honesty I am not sure," the woman confesses from behind him, her voice caring and soft. She has stopped walking and Gabe can feel her stare burning at the back of his head. "You never explained why you had to leave…you just did."

"I left when he was two," Gabe continues, like she hasn't said anything. "I cared a lot about him…and I still do. I didn't even think of that name -,"

"Ignore the song," she advises. "It's just something that he…"

"That he what?" Dr. Cunningham snaps, spinning around to stare at his wife with fury and hurt shining in his ochre eyes. "That he can _relate_ to? He hates me, I know he does!"

"He doesn't hate you," Lisa struggles to reassure him calmly but rage erupts inside of him and he can't help but shout at the top of his lungs.

"YES HE DOES! HE WANTS NOTHING TO DO WITH ME!"

"He does want you!" His wife yells over him, taking a step forward and staring into his eyes with her piercing chocolate ones. "He wants a father -,"

"AND I CAN'T GIVE THAT TO HIM!" Gabe screams, both of them going silent except for his heavy breathing filling up the space between. They stare at each other for a second, waiting for the other to do something, before Gabe turns away and stares outside. His green hair falls in front of his face and he closes his eyes as he whispers meekly, "I'm never going to be good enough for him. That's why I left. When he got sick that time when he was two…I found out what was wrong with him but…but I had to wait helplessly and put his life into the hands of others. I didn't save his life – I don't save anybody's life – so how am I supposed to be a good dad when I can't even do anything to help him?"

"You saved my life," a new voice says confidently from behind the adults, and they instantly spin around to see a small boy staring up at them with large ochre eyes. He stares up at his father, looking determined but scared nevertheless. His hands are held in fists by his side and he holds his head high. Without breaking eye contact, Joshua goes on to say sincerely, "If it wasn't for you I would still be sick. You figured out what was wrong with me, therefore saving my life. If it weren't for you I wouldn't have told anybody that I was hurting so bad. Y-you saved my life…" he finishes with a stutter, gazing longingly and with bewilderment at his father.

There is a long pause of silence as the two gaze at each other and Lisa stands to the side, wondering how in the world Joshua managed to sneak out of the apartment without making a sound.

"I want a father," Joshua mumbles, swallowing nervously to clear a lump in his throat as he tries his best to continue speaking without the water in his eyes building up too much. "M-mom says people make mistakes sometimes…that they get lost. Maybe you go lost too and…and I-I'm not mad at you. But maybe you still…don't want me," he adds quietly, looking at the ground as a tear falls down his face. The fear of rejection of his father is too great, it makes his knees shake and causes him to start crying. He's never been so terrified before in his life.

But then Joshua feels warm arms wrap around his small body and he instantly hugs the person back, stuffing his face in their shoulder and letting the tears fall down freely.

Gabe, kneeling before his son, holds his child in his arms for a long time. He doesn't care that his suit is getting soaked from his son's tears nor does he mind that he finds that he himself is crying a bit too.

He rubs his son's back soothingly and ruffles up his dark green hair that is so similar to his own.

"I love you, Joshua," Gabe whispers into his son's ear as Joshua's fists clutch onto his suit. "I want to be there for you."

Gabe feels his son nodding and then Joshua steps away from him, wiping away the tears in his eyes. "R-really?" He asks quietly, staring through his watery eyes at his father.

Gabe smiles at him and brushes away some tears with the back of his hand. "Really," he states and Joshua instantly engulfs him in another hug, one so powerful that he almost falls backwards.

He starts laughing as he continues to hold him, thinking about how all it took for him to get reunited with his family was a deadly disease called Wermer's Syndrome, a tornado, and a song about family abandonment. Gabe makes a mental note to thank that band someday for getting the two people he cares most about back into his life.

**Author's Note**

Yeah, it isn't my best work but it's my only thing for Trauma Center/Team at the moment. Like others, nobody knows how Lisa is with her personality or her looks so I totally made it up. I think that Gabe would fall in love with somebody witty like him but more caring and somebody who understands him.

I do not own the song "Father of Mine", that belongs completely to the band Everclear. I TAKE NO CLAIM TO IT! (along with Trauma Center/Team)

I'm not sure if people will like the idea of all of these one shots about the two's growing relationship, but I'm going to do it nevertheless.

Please tell me what you think of this, critics or comments will be welcomed. And, like I said before, I am pretty aware that this story isn't amazing. Every writer needs a drabble to relax on. :)

Thanks again, please review!

~~Wave~~


	2. Sleeping In Cars

Sleeping In Cars

They say a sleeping child is one of the most precious sights to behold. Gabe never understood why that was so. Is it just because children are so tiny that makes it "fantastic?" If that was the case, then seeing midgets sleep could be just as adorable.

He knew that he understood it at one point in his life. He used to love watching his son sleep when he was a baby, but he thought that was just because he couldn't get over the fact that he was a father. However, then he became depressed after a series of unfortunate events and looking at his son or Lisa made him feel terribly guilty. Over the years when he was away from his family, he lost the feeling of awe and blithe most parents got whenever they saw their precious child.

With Joshua back in his life, he got that feeling a lot even when his child hadn't been sleeping. Just picking him up from school or swim team practice made his day all the better. Finally, Gabe had something to live for and almost everybody said he spoiled his son to the point where it could be a serious problem.

But, like any child, they grew up. Gabe helped him through it all: going to his first dance in middle school then entering high school as a freshman. Getting his first girlfriend and then breaking up, leaving Gabe to help clean up the mess and lead him through it. Joshua taking SATs and AP exams, looking at Ivy League colleges, and high school graduation. Yet, throughout his ever-changing life, Gabe always found comfort whenever he saw Joshua's sleeping, peaceful face no matter how old he was.

It first happened when Joshua was eleven, a little bit after Gabe and Lisa were spending more time together like they used to when they first started dating. They had gone out and saw a late movie that finished around midnight. When they were leaving the theater and walking through the parking lot, Lisa twirling the car keys around her finger and making pleasant conversation with Gabe, Joshua suddenly broke the peaceful silence by yelling out, "Shot gun!"

Gabe then watched his son bolt towards their small car, Joshua looking over his shoulder and sending his dad a playful grin. Lisa didn't mind this, considering the fact that she was driving, but Gabe wasn't going to end up in back.

"Hey, get back here!" He yelled after him but he was smiling nevertheless. It was clear that Joshua wasn't slowing down so Gabe took off at a run after his son, his long legs catching up to him quickly.

However, Joshua had already reached the car and swung the passenger door open. He had barely got into the seat when his dad attacked him with an army of tickling fingers.

Joshua was laughing so hard that tears began to fall from his eyes and Gabe couldn't help but join in as he lifted his son, still tickling him, and tossed him into the backseat. Joshua managed to grip onto his father's arm so that Gabe wasn't free of him yet.

"If you're taking me down then I'm bringing you with me," the boy grinned up at his father, quoting a line from their movie, and Gabe feigned a fearful expression as his son clawed onto his arms.

Gabe tried prying Joshua off of him, laughing all the while, but the boy had a surprisingly strong grip. The man then started tickling his son some more until the boy was hooting so hard with laughter that he could barely breathe.

They played around for another minute or so, Gabe trying his hardest to pull his son off of him and became impressed by the boy's determination. Lisa, now in the driver's seat, turned around and said with a wry grin, "I don't care where you guys sit, just know that I'm driving in five…four…three…two…"

Gabe, knowing his wife well, jumped into the car just before Lisa began driving away, the door slamming shut with the movement.

"Ha!" Joshua cried out triumphantly, releasing his father and beaming at him. "Now nobody has the passenger seat."

Gabe just chuckled to himself and ruffled his son's hair. "Oh, you are going to pay for that."

The man gripped the boy in a headlock and started ruffling his hair so much that Joshua could hardly see with his bangs swishing in front of him. Even though, the boy kept letting out cries of joy between his breathless laughter as he tried to squirm out of his father's strong grip. Lisa merely smiled to herself, their happiness the best noise she ever heard.

It was late and the ride was a good twenty minutes till they got home, so it didn't take long for Joshua to become sleepy. From that point on Gabe could never erase the image of a kitten whenever his son started to sleep. Like the baby animal, Joshua would be bouncing with energy and looked like he could go for days, but then he'd suddenly freeze and release a loud yawn as his eyes would droop closed. Seconds later, he'd be fast asleep.

That is what happened then. Joshua was trying to tickle his father when he felt that surge of sleepiness overcome him. His yawn filled the car and his ochre eyes started to close. He blinked a few times, a last futile attempt to stay awake, but ended up leaning against his father's shoulder and letting out a deep breath. It took less than five seconds for the boy to be lulled asleep by the cars rhythmic swaying and the man's warmth.

Joshua falling asleep happened so fast and suddenly that Gabe was still tickling him when his son's head nestled against his shoulder. He stopped then, wondering if something was wrong, but a quick check with his keen eyes confirmed that his son had simply drifted to sleep.

For as long as Gabe has lived he has always hated people falling asleep on him, no matter who they were. It was always uncomfortable; their cheekbone would dig into his shoulder and their mouth would hang open in an unattractive fashion, as if they were hoping it might snow and they'd manage to catch a few flakes in their sleep.

Yet, looking down at his son, he thought none of that now, even though Joshua's large mass of green hair was tickling his neck and face and the weight of his son's head made his shoulder slump uncomfortably. All he could think about was how healthy his face looked, how even when his eyes were closed they were wide like his mother's, and how peaceful he appeared. It was as if nothing could hurt him when he was like this. Diseases, weapons, abandonment were hovering outside of the car, waiting to pounce at any moment, but his beautiful child's sleeping form held them back.

With these thoughts, Gabe tried desperately hard to remain as still as possible. As Lisa turned a corner, Joshua's body leaned forward and the man instinctively wrapped an arm around the boy, holding him up. Thankfully, his son remained asleep and Gabe couldn't help but feel that it was his embrace that was protecting his son from the world's horrors.

* * *

"Thanks again for taking us out for dinner, Mr. Cunningham!" A fourteen-year-old kid cried happily from the backseat of the car. Gabe glanced up into the rearview mirror, sending all the kids in his car a grin and a wink.

"I couldn't just let your victory be short lived. You guys beat those bastards even though they tried to get you disqualified by sticking drugs in your bags. I still can't believe nobody got in trouble for that, dumb policemen."

All the teenagers grinned at this, especially his son who sat in the passenger seat beside him. Gabe couldn't tell if the other children were laughing because he said the word "bastards" or because they were still high from winning states for swimming. Lisa always rebuked him for saying words like that, claiming that she didn't want Joshua ever repeating those words, but they quickly realized their son was smarter than that. The boy found it amusing whenever his father used such language, but (as all the doctors at Resurgam liked to put it) he was a nicer version of Gabe and never said such things.

Joshua and the six kids squished in the back seat were all part of the small, elite swim team that had won first place only a few hours before. Afterward, Gabe insisted on taking them all out to a diner for a victorious feast. Being young teenage boys and working out so much, they all cheered and shoved as much food down as possible.

"I see now why you have such little respect for the police," Joshua commented from beside him, grinning at his father and his ochre eyes sparkling underneath his bangs. Like the rest of the kids, he wore black sweat pants and a red sweatshirt that each had their school logo. He had grown a lot in only a few years. He was already five feet, ten inches tall and was starting his awkward teenage years. His body was lanky and Lisa couldn't help but mention constantly how he was bound to get Gabe's skinny body, which wasn't a bad thing. His voice had grown a bit deeper but wasn't quite there yet. His face, however, remained the adorable heart shape that all women (and now girls) fawned over. The chlorine of the pool made his hair dry even puffier than before and his friends had spent a good thirty minutes at the diner taking turns playing with it. They wanted to compare it with Gabe's but he managed to sneak his way out of it.

"I am telling Little Guy about it first thing tomorrow morning. He's bound to attack these idiotic cops and, if we are lucky, maybe even Naomi will get in on the action. Those two could throw anybody in jail if they wanted to," Gabe sent his son a wry grin and Joshua had let out a small chuckle, both of them reflecting on an old memory. A few kids in the back laughed along too, pretending they knew what they were talking about.

It took a while to drop each kid at their houses but Gabe didn't mind, he enjoyed listening to them rave about how close the match was and congratulating each other on their individual wins. He had an overwhelming surge of pride in his heart whenever somebody mentioned how fast Joshua managed to catch back up in the relay and win first place for the team. He also laughed along when they joked about how tough it was to get the swim cap on Joshua's head. All of them had to pull the extra, extra large cap and shove his mass of hair into it but still strands of dark green poked out. Some kids were trying to give him the nickname The Tree but it didn't stick very well.

Once the last kid was gone, Joshua sunk into the car seat and sighed deeply, closing his eyes and smiling to himself. Gabe started pulling out of the driveway slowly, the night's shadows draping over them like a soft blanket.

"You did great, Joshua," Gabe couldn't help but say in a tone that he only used with his son. It was soft and sincere, very rarely showed, and the boy noticed this multiple times.

"Thanks, Dad," his son said softly with a grin, his eyes still closed but went on to say, "Maria and Hank are always asking me if your nice to me. Should I keep telling them that you are training me to be a ninja assassin and defend you from Maria's punches?"

Gabe chuckled at this, marveling at his son's witty demeanor, and responded, "They've been falling for it for a while -,"

"Oh, Dad, your phone's ringing," Joshua had cut in, opening his sleepy eyes and searching for it on the car floor. He found it quickly due to its vibrating, then looked at the caller I.D. and said, "It's Tomoe" before handing it over.

Flipping the cell phone open, Gabe yawned and grumbled, "What?"

"Dr. Cunningham, sorry to disturb you so late at night," the other doctor apologized sweetly. "It is just that I've recently been informed that you are teaching your son to be a ninja. I'm very surprised, I didn't know you had the knowledge that I, too, posses to be a mentor."

At first Gabe was silent, stunned that this woman called right when they were talking about it. For a second he thought that maybe she was outside stalking them…but wasn't that against the path of honor or what not? He personally thought that dumb code was just a way of getting out of things, so if Gabe ever asked her to kill a spider she could say, "That's against the path of honor" when really she just might have found spiders to be disgusting. It was a theory he had built up a long time ago but was worried to voice his concern. Maybe the path of honor said to kill anybody who criticized it.

"Yes, what about it?" He replied cautiously, Joshua leaning in a bit closer in an attempt to hear.

"I'm simply surprised you managed to be trained yourself," Tomoe answered in an excited tone, one that seemed so sincere it had Gabe thinking that maybe she actually _did _believe them. "We must spare some time soon, it will be great for Joshua to see two masters fighting."

At this time Gabe had been swerving past a car on the highway, concentrating on making it a smooth turn, and mumbled absent mindedly, "Yep, that sounds great. When are we fighting – wait, WHAT!"

"Maria insists that we must duel so we can learn techniques from each other," Tomoe explained without hesitation, oblivious that Gabe had swerved around in the road at his realization and his eyes were almost as wide as Joshua's. The car behind him honked as he moved dangerously between lanes and he almost dropped the phone as he tried straightening himself out. "I would love to see what you can do!" Tomoe cried happily as he fumbled around.

"Um…err," Gabe grumbled, tucking the cell phone between his shoulder and head as his sweating hands gripped the wheel to control the car. "Um…I got to go. Oh, and tell Maria to go screw herself."

With that he flipped the phone shut, ending the call, and chucked the object behind him into the back seat.

"What was that about?" Joshua asked curiously as his dad somehow managed to regain control of the car even though he was fuming with irritation towards Maria. That loud mouth girl couldn't handle a joke and had to get her revenge on him, didn't she? It almost got him in a serious car accident, it was even worse that Joshua was in the car and could have gotten hurt. How typical of her, he should have seen that coming.

Noticing how tight his hands were gripping the steering wheel and his mouth was tugged into a scowl, Joshua sunk into the seat a bit more and questioned again, "Dad…what's wrong?"

At the sound of his voice, Gabe glanced over at his son and saw hints of fear in the boys' eyes. Joshua had seen Gabe angry before, lots of times actually, but never towards him. It would always be at RONI, Maria, and Esha, somebody else but never EVER at him.

This being said, Joshua wasn't fearful of Gabe being mad at him because, by the way Gabe's eyes softened when he looked at his son, he knew that his father's anger was directed at something else. The reason he was fearful was worry for how dangerous this cause might be.

"Nothing, just Maria being annoying," Gabe reassured his son, instantly relaxing and forced himself to take his mind off of the possibility that Tomoe might be beating him up in the near future. They continued driving in a comfortable silence, Joshua relieved at the news and both just tired from a long and exciting night.

After a good ten minutes of driving, Gabe turned the car around a corner and slowed down. It was a short street lined with small, quaint two-story wooden houses of various colors. Streetlights showed like starts against the darkness of the night and the only windows that were still alit were the ones that belonged to a pale yellow house on the right.

Parallel parking by the curb, Gabe stared at the windows in hopes that he'd see his wife's form moving past it. The two were – for lack of a better word – together again but it wasn't really official. They were happy, yes, but things moved slowly for the pair. Neither could deny that they had feelings for each other and, as of late, Gabe had stopped beating around the bush and progress things a bit more. They managed to buy a new house and move back in together only a year and a half ago, for Joshua's sake, but Gabe was determined to make his wife love him again openly.

He took out the car key, the engine dying in an instant, and turned to his son to congratulate him one last time before heading in. He opened his mouth to speak but stopped short, seeing that Joshua's eyes were closed and his mouth opened slightly, his breathing soft and steady.

Gabe chuckled and smiled, finding it cute how fast the boy could fall asleep. Perhaps he got it from his father, considering that the man took every opportunity for a nap.

"Come on, Joshua, wake up," Gabe tried rising the boy, shaking his arm a little, but Joshua remained fast asleep. It didn't take long for him to remember how the teenager slept like a rock.

"Aww, don't make me do this…" Gabe groaned, about to reach for his son's water bottle stuffed in his bag, but froze when he heard Joshua softly muttering to himself.

He listened for a moment but the words were incoherent. He noticed how peaceful his son looked now, how sweet and innocent…and then he groaned at himself for sounding so cliché.

"Lisa's right, I'm becoming a softy," he grumbled, leaning back in his seat and forgetting about the water bottle. He sat there for a moment, staring at his son's adorable sleeping face for a moment in contemplation, before letting out a reluctant sigh and getting out of the car. Still a bit irritated with himself, Gabe carefully opened the passenger car door, holding Joshua's head up with his hand.

"I can't believe I'm doing this…you are way too old and…" the man paused for a moment as he tucked one hand under Joshua's back and the other behind his knee. He grunted when he tried lifting him up, staggering under the weight. "Dear lord…you weighed a lot less when you were two!"

After a few minutes of awkward struggling, Gabe managed to pick Joshua out of the car and start heading for the front door, barely able to sustain the weight.

"I need to work out more…" he muttered and, when he got to the door, pondered on how he'd open it. Thankfully, Lisa saw him coming in and she opened it for him. With a knowing smile, she commented slyly, "You softy."

"Shut it," he retorted but she just chuckled at him and he couldn't help but let the edges of him mouth tug upwards.

Lisa followed him up the stairs and into Joshua's room. They had a quick, polite and quiet conversation about how the "after party" went. Lisa had attended the game indeed but wasn't going to dine out with the rest of them. According to her, it seemed that having a mother there would ruin the "wild" feel of it for the boys.

Gabe always liked how she seemed to understand things so well; the boys probably enjoyed it better being a "guys night out" sort of thing. While he thought this, Lisa pulled Joshua's bed covers back and Gabe gently slipped his son onto it. He removed the rubbery sandals Joshua wore and Lisa brought the sheets up over his body. She hesitated when her fingers reached his neck, admiring her boy for a moment, before bending over and placing a quick kiss on his forehead.

"Now who's the softy," Gabe teased from behind and she sent him a mocking glare.

"I'm a mother and female, it's natural that I should be," she replied with a wink, straightening up and grinning at her husband. "You, on the other hand, are a sissy."

Gabe chuckled to himself and shrugged his shoulders. "Excuse me for being a good dad."

Just then Lisa leaned forward and placed a quick kiss on his lips before gliding past him and towards the door. The kiss left Gabe stunned yet extremely pleased, as they always did, and he turned around to watch her go.

She paused by the doorway, looking behind her and sending him a sweet smile. The joking manner faded from her eyes and was replaced by one of tenderness. "Thank you," she whispered before walking out and down the hall, the darkness swallowing her up in seconds.

Gabe stood there for a moment, feeling triumphant, when his thoughts were broken by somebody's smug voice from behind him.

"And you said Mom wasn't that into you."

The man instantly spun around, looking at his smirking son with shock. Joshua was sitting up in bed, sending his father a knowing yet mischievous smile and his eyes were alit with joy. It was a mix between happiness that his mother and father were still going strong and the boyish troublemaker side that he showed every so often.

"You were awake the entire time, weren't you?" Gabe clarified and Joshua shook his head.

"Nope, I woke up when you hit my head on the car door but, since you were already carrying me, I decided to go along with it."

"You clever kid…" Gabe snickered before face palming his forehead for being tricked by his own child. He never got mad at him though, just awed by his son's cunningness sometimes. "Sorry about that by the way, you know, banging your head."

"It's fine -,"

"Good, now go to sleep before I get pissed at being fooled," Gabe cut him off in a jokingly stern tone and Joshua instantly fell to his side and closed his eyes, pretending to be asleep. Even while faking it he still looked completely at ease as he always did. Gabe wouldn't be surprised if he actually did already fall asleep.

Dr. Cunningham went to bed that night with blithe soaring through him…only to be crushed the next day when Tomoe attacked him with her ninja skills. The other doctors laughed from the sidelines, Maria cracking up the loudest.

* * *

"You aren't going to tell Mom, are you?" Seventeen-year-old Joshua asked nervously from next to his father, glancing between his feet and his father's enraged face. It was late, probably around one in the morning, and Dr. Cunningham was doing something he rarely did: he was scolding his son.

"Of course I'm telling her!" He snapped, his voice hushed but venomous nonetheless. Joshua flinched underneath his bitter tone, trying to inch his chair away from his father a bit. Both were sitting side by side in uncomfortable plastic chairs in the police station's lobby. "You stole a car for Christ's shake! You expect me not to?"

"I didn't steal a car," Joshua tried to explain for the hundredth time that night but to no avail. It was as if all reasoning had flown away from his father the moment he got the call that his son and his friend, Dillon, were in jail. Gabe had come right away and got his son out after a long two hours of yelling at the police and explaining what really happened. Dillon had picked Joshua up in his "brand new car" and, without the green haired teenager knowing it, was driving around town with his friend in a stolen car. Even though Gabe was fully aware of the situation, he still went on saying how Joshua stole it. "Like I said before, I had _no idea_ it was stolen," the son tried to reason with his father in a calm, levelheaded tone, but Gabe would have none of it.

"Well you might've as welled if I'm being forced to stay up this late waiting for one of Dillon's parents to leave poker night and come here to pick him up!"

In the small room that they were waiting in, the receptionist glanced up at them, glaring at the pair with her beady eyes for a second before focusing back on the computer.

"I called you for a reason, Dad. I thought you'd be cooler with this," Joshua grumbled, crossing his arms and looking away.

"_Cooler_ with this?" Gabe repeated in utter shock, staring at the young man with wide and enraged eyes. Even now he thought that he was looking into a mirror and that he was rebuking himself. Joshua grew up well and, even to him, more handsome. His son's hair remained that giant mass of green but everybody he met loved it, especially Alyssa who currently had a thing for him. His pale face was heart shaped like his mother's and his wide ochre eyes filled it out nicely. He wasn't as awkwardly lanky as he used to be in his early teen years, he was much more comfortable in his body now. Even though Gabe felt like he was talking to himself, it didn't stop him from scolding his son and raising his voice. "You think I'm cool with you being thrown in jail! Do you know what happens in jail? Gay rape. You could have been gay raped!"

"That's only in the movies –"

"Gay rape," Gabe repeated, as if saying it again would enforce the threat.

"I was in there for thirty minutes –"

"Gay rape."

"Nobody else was in the cell with us –"

"Gay rape."

"Quit saying that!" Joshua snapped, glaring at his father who slouched back in his plastic chair, crossing his arms and stretching his long legs out before him. He made a pouting face and his son rolled his eyes. Sometimes Joshua thought he was the adult rather than Gabe.

His son opened his mouth to speak some more but his words fell short when the door swung open, a woman with long dyed blonde hair rushing into the station.

"Where is he!" She cried, tears streaming down her face and her makeup pooling out of her eyes. She was what Gabe called a casino mom, the forty-year-old woman who still wore mini skirts and halter-tops, normally got drunk or high and worked at Hooters. "Where is my baby Dillon!"

A policeman quickly came over and tried calming her down, explaining the situation to her as she continued to sob. Without a word, Gabe got up and started heading for the door. With Dillon's mother finally here, he was free to go.

Joshua quickly followed him and they walked in a tense silence to the car. They wouldn't look at each other, the night hiding their fuming faces in shadows. Nobody spoke until they had reached the highway, the air practically popping with their fury.

Joshua was the first to break it. Leaning against the window and staring out into the night, watching the rain slam against the road, he grumbled, "You are being completely unreasonable."

A bitter, sarcastic laughter followed from Gabe and he retorted hotly, "Unreasonable because I'm pissed at you for going to jail? Hardly –"

"You know it wasn't my fault!" Joshua snapped, focusing his stare on his father whose eyes remained glued to the road.

"I know, it's just –" Gabe started to say, a bit more calmly, but his son was fully enraged now and wasn't going down that easily.

"Just what? Huh? Why are you being so unfair?"

"Because I was worried about you!" Gabe shouted over him, braking abruptly at a stop sign and causing both of them to lurch forward, their seatbelts the only thing holding them back from smashing their heads.

Silence fell on the two and they gazed at each other for a few moments. Joshua's eyes were wide with surprise while Gabe sighed deeply, looking out towards the road and slouching back in his seat.

They said nothing for a second but the stillness was broken by Gabe's sarcastic laughter again. Chuckling, he said mostly to himself, "I can't wait till you have a kid of your own and you'll see just how painful it can be."

Joshua remained silent, simply staring at his father in bewilderment as Dr. Cunningham continued on. The man turned his head towards his son, sending him a tiny, crooked smile. "You'll see how having a kid makes you so vulnerable," Gabe explained, his eyes softening with every word he said and the rage completely gone. "I swear, I thought nobody could ever hurt me when I was alone. Don't get me wrong, having you was the best thing that ever happened to me, it's just…"

Gabe trailed off there, his gaze focusing back on the road and he stared out at the rain with a dazed expression. He continued in a much graver voice, his son hanging on his every word.

"I love you, kid, don't ever forget that. That's why I'm being so…unreasonable right now. You don't understand how scared I was when I heard you were in jail. I ran out of our house so fast I didn't even grab _coffee_. Coffee! It didn't cross my mind once, and you _know_ how much I need coffee to function."

His voice had quickened at the last part and he paused then, taking a deep breath before turning his eyes back on his son and letting out another deep sigh. "I'm sorry for yelling at you…it was just how I decided to vent my worry and frustration at myself for not being there to help you sooner."

Nobody moved for about five seconds, the words sinking into both of them, until Joshua leaned across the space between them and embraced his father in a hug, smiling to himself and replying sincerely, "I'm sorry too, for yelling at you and making you worry so much."

Gabe nodded, holding his son in his arms and trying to remain as nonchalant as he could. After a few seconds they broke apart and the man somehow kept his composure after a very rough night.

Just then somebody started blaring on the horn from behind them and the Cunninghams looked in the rearview mirror at a black truck. The burly man in the car gave them the finger but his formidable size didn't stop Gabe from returning the gesture. They instantly sped away after that, going a bit faster than the legal limit for them to get away.

The drive back home was a long one, the police department being thirty minutes away from their home that was on the outskirts of town. No more words were shared between them, both too tired to speak and having comfort in the silence.

At one point Gabe glanced over and saw his son curled up in the passenger seat sound asleep. His knees were tucked up against his chest and his head nestled between the back of the seat and the window. With his innocent expression and suddenly small appearance, he truly reminded Gabe of a kitten.

Dr. Cunningham smiled to himself, finally letting his eyes tear up a bit at the relief that his son was okay. He couldn't help but reflect on the years they had together. He always heard stories of how fast children grew up but he never thought it would be like this, such strong feelings of pride, love, frustration, and fear. The years had been good to both of them and they got along great but it hurt Gabe to know that soon his boy would leave him for college and fully become a man. Ever since they reunited Joshua wanted to be a diagnostician like his dad and he still had that dream. Everybody who knew the teenager agreed he would be one of the most skilled and caring doctors.

Yet, looking at his peaceful sleeping face then, future worries seemed to have left Gabe. All he cared about was the now, having his son safe and healthy by his side. Joshua grew up to be a great young man and Gabe was going to have to accept the fact that soon he could only help him grow from afar but, at the moment, he just enjoyed his presence. No matter what they have been through, Joshua's sleeping face always seemed to have brought joy to him in any situation.

_Author's Note_

It got a bit deeper at the end there, the middle one was more of a humorous thing and showing the progress of Gabe's relationship with his family. The first story was a good starting point. I guess this story shows the overall "plotline" that I would do if I owned Trauma Team and if I were to focus on Gabe getting back with his family.

Would you call this fluffy? I feel like this thing is just dripping with fluff…or is fluff used for a more romantic story? Is there another word for family cuteness? I tried to keep Gabe in character as much as possible by adding hints of his usual bashful manner, but it's tough when I'm trying to make him a sensitive dad. He's supposed to act a lot differently towards his son, nicer and all, but the same he's always been with everybody else.

God, I hate past tense. So many times I accidentally switched to present tense and then had to go back over it and fix it all. I just thought past tense would be more appropriate for this kind of thing. I'm not sure if I'll do it again, I guess we'll just have to see.

I'm going to probably jump around a lot in this collection of drabbles. I might do one-shots that are like this which cover a large span of time or ones like the first story that is focused on a single event. Just a heads up for you on what to expect.

Before I shut up from my rambling, I'd like to thank everybody who reviewed last time, so thank you very much **Giant Ninja Panda, Indochine Ramera, ChocoaltexCheese, **and **Kirbanlove23.** Your reviews were all very encouraging and helpful, I loved them! I hope you liked this one too and please review!

~~Wave~~


	3. Hair

"How about this?" Gabe distantly hears somebody ask from inside his office as he opens the door. He isn't surprised to see Alyssa and Joshua in there, his fifteen year old son on the floor and the girl sitting on the couch, but more curious about what they are doing. Joshua is staring at his reflection in a cell phone and Alyssa's hands are messing with his huge mass of dark green hair. She gently pulls at it this way and that and is constantly asking, "Is this good," and Joshua just mumbles something incoherent that she takes as a no.

"What are you doing?' The doctor curiously asks, striding into the room and raising an eyebrow at the pair. RONI's screen lights up but he ignores her while walking to the couch.

"Doctor," RONI's robotic voice addresses the man and Gabe sighs. "I must remind you that you cannot leave minors unsupervised alone in your office. It is against the hospitals rules –"

"You tell me this everyday," Gabe grumbles, cutting her off and sending her a glare before lightning up a bit. "Besides, what are they going to do? Throw a wild house party? Let it drop, sheesh!"

RONI responds in her monotone voice, "Yes, Doctor." Gabe then plops down on the couch next to thirteen-year-old Alyssa who is still messing with his son's hair. She's about a head shorter than Joshua (who is still growing tremendously) with an orange headband in her auburn hair just like it was five years ago. Her emerald green eyes shine with the sparkle of youth and, while not blood related to Naomi, she has the same creamy skin as her adoptive mother.

Joshua struggles to look at his father but the girl keeps him in place. Instead, he has to view him from the corner of his eye as he answers his father's earlier question.

"Mom insists that I cut my hair," he says sadly and doesn't get a chance to elaborate before his father cuts in.

"What!" Gabe exclaims, his eyes growing wide and Alyssa smiles in amusement to herself. She knew he'd react this way.

"Yesterday at the swim meet I wasn't allowed to compete because I forgot my swim cap and nobody else had one that was extra, extra large," Joshua quickly explains to try to keep his dad calm.

"But if you cut your hair then I can't dress you up as me and get Hank confused!"

"I know, I know," the boys but Gabe won't be brought down.

Standing up, he announces defiantly, "I'm going to buy you twenty extra, extra large swim caps and then you'll NEVER forget it again!"

"Or you could save the money by cutting it," Alyssa ventures, smiling sweetly and twirling her fingers around strands of green hair.

"What are you even doing?" Gabe asks, his curiosity already destroying the determination he had a few seconds ago, plopping back down on the couch in defeat.

"I'm trying to show him what his hair would look like if it were cut but…" she mumbles, looking upset for a second. "It doesn't really seem to be working."

They sit in silence for a moment, watching Alyssa rearrange his hair but Joshua shakes his head.

Resting a hand on his son's shoulder, Gabe explains, "You don't have to get it cut if you don't want to, Joshua. I really will buy you some more swim caps."

"No, no…" the boy murmurs, a little doubtful sounding though. "Having a different look could be interesting. I've had this hairstyle my whole life –"

"Same here," Gabe adds in.

" – So maybe I should cut it…for something new, you know?"

The doctor shrugs while Joshua adds mostly to himself, "I just wish I knew what it would look like if I cut it."

Just then, somebody knocks on the door and Naomi walks in. She calls for Alyssa and the girl leaves, wishing Joshua best of luck with whatever he does and high fives Gabe on the way out. The Cunninghams go down to the break room to get opinions from the other doctors on Joshua's hair. Hank wants the boy to cut his hair because he doesn't want to be tricked anymore and he'll have somebody who will look more like him. Maria is completely against it, picking Joshua up and dragging him away from his dad so Gabe can't drive him home and, therefore, Lisa can't take him to get a haircut. Tomoe says he looks great either way and CR-S01 is indifferent.

While to others getting a haircut isn't a big deal, but Gabe understands why Joshua is so torn. This giant green mass is their signature thing, it would be so weird for either of them to look any different…or maybe that's what his son wants?

As Gabe tries prying Maria's fingers off of Joshua, Hank starts fishing around in his wallet, dumping out a huge chunk of money, credit cards, his license, and other random plastic cards until a crumpled and old photograph falls out.

He snatches it off the table, holding it up high with a victorious grin and exclaims, "I found it!", causing the others to freeze in what they are doing.

"Found what?" Maria asks, her arms wrapped around Joshua's chest and lifting the teenager off the ground. Gabe turns around, raising a curious eyebrow and examines the photo.

"This picture of Gabe and I in the army," Hank explains in a calmer voice, handing the picture to Maria's outstretched hand as she lets go of Joshua, who lands shakily on his feet.

She doesn't do anything for a second - Tomoe and CR peering over her shoulder and studying the photograph - until a smirk stretches across her tan skin and she bursts into laugher.

"This is too weird…" she snickers, flicking her gaze between Gabe and the picture while Tomoe giggles and CR nods silently in agreement.

"What is it?" Joshua inquires, squeezing his way past CR and Maria hands him the photo. He instantly yelps and holds the item away from his body like it's some deadly disease. Gabe, still unsure of what the image holds, quickly walks to his son's side. The boy's ochre eyes are wide with awe and fear as he brings the picture closer to him again to observe better.

The diagnostician instantly recognizes the photo, one of the few he allowed himself to smile in because he was so elated to be going home in that scene. He's on the left side of the photo, the giant man that is Hank in the middle, and Hank's long lost friend on the right. They were all beaming through the dusty haze that had clouded them at the base camp and looked more joyful than school boys getting an extra long recess. Little did they know that they'd get attacked that same day, which would be the battle that Hank's old friend died in.

Gabe knows that the big guy had kept the photo so he could remember his buddy, remember how he had failed to save him, but for Joshua it is to see what his father looked like with a buzz cut. It had made Joshua's heart skip a beat and caused him to cry out in alarm. Studying it now, all he can think is how weird his father looks, appearing shorter without his hair adding an extra foot and his face unnaturally narrow. Even though, Joshua thinks he looks pretty good, just in a different way than the green mass of fluff makes him.

The boy isn't planning on getting a buzz cut, but even if the new look turns out terrible he'll at least make some people scream in the hallways at school.

After a few teases between the doctors towards Gabe, Joshua nods in thanks to Hank and returns the precious photograph. The picture hadn't helped much; he remains troubled and confused about the possibility of changing his hairstyle.

* * *

Lisa sighs as she puts dirty dishes into the washer, aggravated that Gabe had failed to inform her he wouldn't be coming in for dinner. Unsurprisingly, Alyssa is at the house with Joshua and the mother decides she'll make her husband drive the girl home. Making him pay for gas is always a good punishment.

Once the task is finished, she goes into the kitchen to collect her workbag. Her son and Alyssa are in there, seated side by side at the table while Joshua tries explaining something about parabolas to his best friend. The two are great together, looking out for one another and Joshua tutoring the thirteen-year-old girl in math and sometimes science (but, thanks to Naomi, she never needs help with forensics or anatomy). Even though they are best friends, it's obvious to Lisa that Alyssa has a thing for Joshua. Of course, being just like his father, he's ignorant to her fond stares or how she smiles wider whenever he enters the room. Feeling uneasy due to her younger age, the mother knows Alyssa won't try doing anything more than just basking in her son's presence, yet in a few years who knows?

"We're in feet…so? It means you have to change your measurement for gravity," Joshua corrects in a friendly manner, reaching across and pointing at something on the piece of paper. Alyssa blushes a bit at his closeness but he notices nothing.

"Joshua?" Lisa interrupts their study session, her son straightening up and staring at her with his adorably wide eyes. "When should the time for your haircut be tomorrow? We can do right after school or before dinner?"

Her son pales a bit at the mention of his hair, which he absentmindedly runs a hand through as he ponders the question.

"I-I'm not sure…" he mumbles but Alyssa cuts him off with encouraging words.

"You'll look great no matter, don't worry," she smiles sweetly at him and he nods in appreciation.

"Whatever is easier for you I guess -,"

He doesn't finish the sentence though, the sound of the front door opening and closing cutting him off. Lisa mumbles something along the lines of "_Finally!" _and they all listen to the familiar footsteps of Dr. Cunningham coming closer to the kitchen. The hallway is lost in shadows but they can see his silhouette steadily approaching them. Lisa turns to face him, ready to interrogate him at where he has been, but is at a lost for words when the man enters the light of the kitchen.

A heavy silence fills the room, Gabe's lazy and irritated eyes passing over the faces and a frown tugs at his mouth. His hands are stuffed in his orange pant's pockets and his shoulders are hunched underneath his white lab coat. Alyssa nearly topples over in her chair at the sight of him while Joshua's and Lisa's mouths hang open, their eyes as wide as an owl's and bodies frozen in place.

Everybody's gazes are directed at Gabe's hair…or lack of it. He looks completely different, like his mound of dark green decided to shrink until it was nothing but…_normal_. The bangs and tufts puffing around his ears are gone, the pony tail also nowhere to be found. It's short and wispy in clumps sticking to his head and making his face look a little too long and narrow.

He did the most unexpected thing ever.

He got a _haircut_.

Turning his piercing ochre eyes onto his son's fearful ones, Gabe instructs in a menacing growl, "Never, _ever_, get your hair cut more than a trim. What I went through was worse than the army."

In a huff, Gabe spins on his heels and marches up the stairs, leaving the kids and his wife in stunned silence. Joshua doesn't talk to him until the walk to school the following day, where his father explains the horrors he experienced at the hairdressers. After washing it and assailing him with five combs, his hair had finally straightened out and they were ready to cut it…but in less than ten seconds the thing had already started spiking up again. Frustrated and clueless, the ten employees decided to just cut it in huge clumps, starting with the ponytail, then six inches from the top of the head and working around that until they got to a manageable length to brush it out. He had gotten his hair cut before when he entered the army, but he actually feel asleep during that at three in the morning, and their tugging and clumps of his precious hair falling around him forced him to remain awake to watch the horror.

At work he is greeted with the same reactions as his family and Alyssa, though some people actually tripped over the own feet to look at him or ran into walls. Somebody even fainted.

He has to admit, the look is an attractive one, but it's something too different from who he truly is. Thankfully, it doesn't take long for it all to grow back to its unruly length.

While Gabe never admits it, Joshua will always know that his father cut his hair for him so he could see what it would look like. However, the boy took heed of the warning and never cut his hair more than the necessary trim.

_Author's Note_

_Thanks for all of the reviews last time! They were fantastic and I'm really loving them! There isn't much to say for this drabble, just that I tried making it somewhat humorous but I don't think it's a laugh out loud kind of fic._

_I wanted to do something less fluffy before I got into some pretty angsty two part fic I'm planning on doing. When I originally thought of this idea, I had wanted the stories to be light hearted and short, but with a small touch of sweetness. We can't have too much angst!_

_Thanks for reading and please review!_

_~~Wave~~_


	4. The Birds and the Bees

The Birds and the Bees

Gabe has just gotten up on Sunday, his only day off, and slept in to his heart's content. He walks down the stairs and into the kitchen, wiping his eyes of grogginess and still feeling tired after sleeping all the way to one in the afternoon. He hears the distant hum of the television from the room over and plates clattering against one another.

Upon entering the small kitchen, Dr. Cunningham is forced to squeeze his eyes shut against the sunlight pouring in from the windows that reflect off the sink and metal appliances. His wife stands by the stove, hovering over a pan with three grilled cheeses cooking, the butter making a satisfying sizzling noise.

His groan against the sunlight is what brings her attention to him. Looking over her shoulder as she flips a sandwich with a spatula, her mouth spreads into a grin and she says with relief, "Oh Gabe, I'm so glad you're here!" Her chocolate brown eyes sparkle for a moment but, as if she remembers something very important, they dull into seriousness.

Bleary from just waking up, the man runs a hand through his crazy green hair and lets out a loud, obnoxious yawn, causing his wife to hesitate in what she was going to say. She's a little annoyed with his rudeness but in truth it doesn't bother her, she just waits till he's finished yawning and looks at her expectedly with dazed ochre eyes. "Gabe," she addresses him again, this time in a whisper and her smile falling away to a thin, straight line. Turning off the stove, she takes a few steps toward him and rests a hand on his shoulder. He looks down at her questioningly and she continues earnestly, "I realized this morning while talking to Irene – Luke's mom – that we have never bothered to educate Joshua on the…um, _sensitive _spots in life. He's fourteen, he needs to know by now."

There is a moment of silence as Gabe tries to process what his wife just said but, by the blank look on his face, she realizes that he has no clue.

Sighing, she tries to clarify, "I want you to give him _the talk_."

"What!" Gabe instantly yells, jumping away and now fully awake. The sleep is gone from his eyes and it's as if the mention of the topic made his body ready for a marathon. Even though he's a doctor, he'll run ten miles if it means he doesn't have to get in to such an awkward conversation with his boy – somebody who he wants to be innocent and adorable forever.

"He's a boy and you're a man…" she attempts to calm him down in her soft spoken manner. "It's a father-son thing."

"No," Gabe argues, stepping closer and lowering his voice so his son doesn't hear, but the clamor of the television from the room over drowns their voices. "A father-son thing is going fishing or playing catch -"

"You don't do either of those things."

"Don't blame me if fishing is the biggest waste of time!" Gabe begins, ready to rant about the idiocy of fishing as he is known to do whenever the subject is mentioned. "Why would anybody want to sit on a boat for hours and likely end up with nothing? And if you do catch something, it's a disgusting, scaly, dripping-with-parasitic-water, fish that's gushing blood and flapping around like it's trying to beat the shit out of you! I just don't want to –"

"I know, I know," Lisa interjects, smiling in amusement at him and patting his shoulder to stop him. "Fishing sucks because you had a bad childhood experience. The fish wasn't trying to repeatedly slap you."

"Ha, tell that to my two teeth that got knocked out," Gabe huffs, crossing his arms and looking to the side, a deep frown creasing his face.

Suppressing a chuckle, his wife focuses back to the topic at hand and leans her face closer to his. Once he gazes back at her wide and pleading chocolate brown eyes that she knows he can't ignore, she asks again, "Can you talk to him, please?"  
He hesitates, stuffing his hands in his pockets and looking down at the ground. "Do I have to?" He mumbles with the same reluctance and sadness of a little boy being told to brush his teeth and go to bed.

"Yes," she replies, stepping away from him and heading back over to the stove. She suddenly yells, breaking the whispering silence between them, "Joshua! Your dad needs to talk to you!"

"Okay!" Joshua calls back instantly, followed by the sound of the T.V. clicking off.

"What?" Gabe gasps as Lisa puts a plate of two grilled cheeses on the table in the small kitchen, keeping one for herself. "I don't want to do it now! I just woke up!"

"Too late," she smiles mischievously at him, a witty gleam in her eyes, before rapidly walking out of the room and up the stairs. Right after that, Joshua enters, stopping by the threshold of the door and gazing at his father curiously.

"What do you need, Dad?" He questions, his adorably wide amber eyes staring up at Gabe with a mix of concern and curiosity. His tall, lanky body goes up to his dad's shoulders but he has only just started growing. It seems that everyday they have to buy new clothes and shoes to fit him.

Coughing nervously and poking at the ground with his foot, Gabe mumbles in defeat and anxiousness, "Take a seat, son."

Wondering if he is in trouble or his father has some bad news, Joshua slides into a chair and Gabe sits across from him, still looking at the ground and coughing a bit.

They sit in silence for a minute, Dr. Cunningham glancing between his son and his hands every few seconds, and shifts around in his seat constantly. The boy simply stays put, his hands resting on his knees and his head cocked to the side in confusion.

Finally, after what seems like forever, Gabe clears his throat and begins, "As you know, you are fourteen now…and going through some changes."

At the mention of this Joshua's face pales and he stares at his father like he just said, "Maria is hiding in your closet and is waiting to kill you with a toothbrush and deodorant. Run to the neighbors when I say go."

Through his nervousness, Gabe forces himself to look into his son's wide and horrified eyes. "D-Dad," Joshua stammers. "I already know what happens, you don't have to-,"

"No, no," his father cuts him off, holding up a hand and releasing a sigh. "You might think you know everything but maybe you don't. You see, Joshua…um…well, you know what a penis is, right?"

"Yes, Dad, I know what a penis is," Joshua replies dryly and Gabe coughs a bit more.

"Okay, so…when you see a really attractive woman – probably with large breasts-"

"Dad," Joshua cuts in a bit more strongly. "I know what happens, it's okay."

Silence.

"Do you know what an erection is?"

Joshua starts smacking his head against the table.

Suddenly terms start coming up uncontrollably and Dr. Cunningham starts blurting them out, like his mind thinks that simply saying everything will make it better.

"How about ejaculating? See, women have vaginas…"

More head bangs against the table.

"Do you know what sex is?"

Joshua continues to hit his head a little harder and mumbles a pained, "Yes."

Resorting to his old method of dealing with awkward issues, Gabe leans back in his chair and yells a little too loudly, "Boy, this sure is awwwkward!" He exclaims, holding the last part out while his son continues to try to kill his brain cells in an attempt to get this incredibly disturbing conversation out of his head.

After a few more head pounds, Joshua straightens up, a large red mark on his forehead hidden a bit by his bangs, and looks at his father with tired eyes. "Did mom tell you to do this?"

"Yep."

"Then can we shorten this down, please? Not to be rude or anything…it's just that I have homework and what not…" Joshua trails off there, glancing around nervously as his father nods in agreement.

"Sounds good to me," he responds, leaning forward and beckoning his son to do the same. Both of them hunched over the table, Gabe explains in a determined yet calm voice like he's setting the offense for a football team. "Okay, don't do drugs and don't have sex. Deal?"

"Deal."

They shake hands, both noting how clammy the other's is, before departing the kitchen in opposite directions faster than Joshua can say Deoxyribonucleic Acid.

_Author's Note_

_Eh, it's kind of short but I feel like stretching this out would just be tedious. Plus I did this on a whim, so if I were to really think about it I probably wouldn't have enjoyed doing it as much as I did._

_Oh the talk, what a classic thing to discuss. :) I actually never got it, I guess having no cable and nothing else to watch but That 70s Show and Friends, along with three older siblings, kind of destroys the need to have the talk. But of course Gabe would blow it with his son, and of course Joshua is so smart that he already knows it. He's fourteen after all, I guess his parents were just a little late with it._

_This wasn't the angst two-part fic by the way, just something I wanted to write to take a break from work and what not._

_Thank you for all the reviews last chapter and the ones before them. I really love them, they are a ton of fun to read and encouraging, making me write faster. Thanks for reading and please review!_

_~~Wave~~_


	5. The Lost Princess

_Author's Note_

So this isn't much of a Father of Mine story because it doesn't really focus that much on Joshua and Gabe's relationship, but it is still there! I really only put this story into the Father of Mine Collection because I feel awful for not updating in forever. I have a ton of short stories I want to do for this but I find myself stopping halfway through writing them and not having the motivation to continue. I had stopped working on Father of Mine for a few months because I really just wanted to finish this chapter fic of mine and, now that it's done, I'm having trouble getting out of a writer's slump.

This was written on one of my many snow days and only has slight Gabe and Joshua focus. Instead, the main thing here is Joshua and Alyssa. I hear it's a popular pairing but there isn't a lot of writing on it. That being said, prepare for fluffiness! Also, sorry if my writing sucks due to writer's block. I hope you enjoy nevertheless!

~~Wave~~

* * *

The Lost Princess

* * *

"How are you feeling, Alyssa?" ten-year-old Joshua asks as he leans forward in his wooden stool beside the hospital bed. Although he tries to hide it, worry shines in his ochre eyes as he gazes at his friend. They had only met two weeks ago but they are already closer than most and Joshua cannot help but be concerned when her face is noticeably paler and her emerald eye keeps drooping.

Alyssa's head is wrapped in bandages and one strip covers her left eye. Tufts of russet hair poke through her wrappings in a messy fashion. At first he found her appearance humorous but now, when she is showing unease, he wishes those bandages would disappear.

She wiggles around in her bed and blinks her bleary eye open. Some days the two solve puzzles or watch television, or any activity that the two can do in Alyssa's room. Today is one of those days where she wants nothing more than for Naomi to read her a story but, since her new mother is working, she will have to make use of her new friend.

Ignoring his question, she asks in a small voice, "Will you read me a story?"

Joshua immediately nods, his bushy green hair bobbing with the motion, and flips through a basket full of short stories. "Which one do you want to hear?" He questions.

"_The Lost Princess_," she whispers while closing her eye again and takes a few deep breaths.

Joshua pulls the book out but, before he begins reading, he takes her hand and urges her awake. She blinks her eye open again and he offers, "I can get a nurse if you need one."

Alyssa smiles a little bit and replies sleepily, "No, I just want to hear a story."

He nods and releases her hand. Opening to the first page he begins reading a tale about a princess who is kidnapped at birth and then raised by farmers in the countryside for eighteen years, unaware of her real identity. It isn't until the kingdom has fallen to the hands of a tyrant that a handsome man finds her in a field of crops. After telling her of her real identity, the two rush back to the castle to stop the tyrant, all the while falling in love with each other. The brave, handsome man defeats the villain and the kingdom rejoices. Everybody is happy until the princess finds her hero leaving the castle in the middle of the night.

"_Where are you going, my love?_" Joshua reads in a soft tone even though he is unsure if Alyssa is awake or not. Her eyes have been closed this entire time and her breathing is deep; he cannot stop reading nevertheless.

"_I cannot stay, princess. I have saved you and now others need me_," Joshua says, reciting the lines of the hero.

"_But I love you and you love me. Stay with me, my hero, and we shall love and grow old together in peace_."

"_I cannot. Do not worry though, my beautiful princess, for one day we shall be together again_."

"_Can you promise me that? Promise me you'll return. Swear by it…with a kiss._"

Joshua hesitates in his reading, looking up at Alyssa to see if she has shown any signs of consciousness yet. This is her favorite part of the story yet her body's as still as it was before.

With a deep breath, Joshua reads the final lines of the story, "_The handsome hero took the princess in his arms and gave her a passionate kiss, promising that he'll return at the same time, and then left his love and went away. Years passed and he had not yet returned but the princess waited. More years passed and suitors were begging for her hand, but she refused them and continued waiting. More years passed and her body was growing old, waiting for her hero, but still he had not come. Years flew by and soon she was too old to move from her bed and, just before she lost all hope, a soft pair of lips kissed her forehead._

_"I promised to return, didn't I?_"

A frozen silence hovers in the air as Joshua slowly closes the book and returns it to the pile. He watches as her chest rises with each deep breath she takes and, after a few minutes of quiet, he stands from his stool and begins heading towards the door. Just as he is about to exit, however, he hears somebody ask softly from behind him,

"Are you leaving today?"

Joshua spins around to see Alyssa's green eye staring at him. He wonders how she knew about his discharge from the hospital but, finding it unimportant for now, pushes the thought away. Nodding, he walks back over to Alyssa's side and confesses,

"I'm sorry but I've healed from my surgery. I can't stay here anymore."

Blinking the sleep out of her eyes, she asks innocently, "Why? Are you going to help other people?"

Joshua smiles and nods again. "Yeah, I'm going to help others like the doctors have helped us."

This, however, doesn't make the sadness disappear from her green orbs. In a soft voice, she questions shakily, "W-will…will we ever see each other again?"

With a grin, Joshua states and winks playfully, "Yes we will, _princess_. One day we'll be together again."

The sorrow flickers out of her eyes and a small smile appears on her face. In all seriousness, she replies, "Can you promise me that? Promise me you'll return. Swear by it…with a kiss."

Joshua's eyes grow wide and he wonders if she's only playing. Her gaze is steady, though, and he realizes that she is not joking around.

Swallowing a lump in his throat, he somehow manages to nod and bends his head forward. Ever so slowly he brings his mouth closer to hers until he can feel her shallow breathing against his face. He hesitates then, only an inch away, before very gently skimming his lips against hers.

It lasts for only a second before he straightens back up. Her eye is closed and her mouth slightly parted. With each deep breath she takes, Joshua somehow knows that she's really asleep this time.

* * *

Seven Years Later

* * *

It didn't take long for the two kids to be reunited. Gabe took Joshua with him to pick something up from Naomi's office one time and Alyssa was the one who opened the door. She tackled the boy in a hug and the two have been best friends ever since.

And that is all they have ever been. Over time the moment between them has become foggy and now, seven years later, it has been completely forgotten.

"Dad, you're the one getting the award and yet I'm dressed nicer than you," seventeen-year-old Joshua teases as he struggles with a piece of ribbon around his neck.

"At least I can make a bowtie," Gabe retorts with amusement in his tone. The two are in Joshua's bedroom, both preparing themselves for the single highly formal event of the year. The state is giving Dr. Cunningham an award for being one of the best diagnosticians in the region and, against his bitter judgment, he is being forced to go. Naturally, he has to bring his family along with him.

"Stupid thing," Joshua huffs, throwing the ribbon on the ground and turning around to face his father. Both of them are dressed in sleek tuxedos and, if Gabe had taken the time to button his vest and put on shoes, they would almost look exactly alike. Only family members and close friends can tell the minor differences between the two. Sure, Joshua has bigger eyes and a more heart shaped face, but would they notice that Gabe's shoulders and broader than his son's? Or that Joshua stands up straight while his father slouches?

Gabe chuckles from his spot on the bed when the door opens and Lisa enters.

"I thought you two would be ready by now," she sighs and, even though he hates the thought of the party, Gabe has to admit his wife looks "pretty darn good" as he'd usually say. Her brown curly hair is pulled up into a ruffled bun and her slim figure is dressed in a dark green halter dress that falls around her ankles.

"I'm almost ready," Joshua protests with a sheepish grin while his mother snatches the ribbon off the floor and expertly ties it into a bowtie around her son's neck.

"Gabe, please put some shoes on and try to be civil tonight," she orders and he pushes himself off the bed with a yawn.

"Only if there is an open bar," he grumbles and, once they arrive, Gabe's pleased to find that there is one.

The ballroom is heavily decorated with golden chandeliers that reflect in the polished stone floor. The walls are covered in a paisley design and women in long dresses and men in tuxedos wander around the dance floor chatting with one another. The far end of the room is crowded with over two dozen circular white dining tables and, in the corner of the large area, is a small orchestra playing a piece by Bach.

It doesn't take long for Gabe and Lisa to meet up with Maria at the open bar while Joshua sees Naomi's dazzling white hair from across the room.

"Hello, Joshua," Naomi greets in her lucid voice while sipping a glass of water.

"Hello, Dr. Kimishima," the young man greets with a polite smile.

"Alyssa is at the buffet," she instructs after a second of awkward silence.

Thanking her, Joshua pushes past the throng people until he spots Alyssa pilling pasta onto her china plate. He freezes upon seeing her although he doesn't know why. Her skinny body is dressed in a strapless light blue dress the shimmers in the light. It's tight around her torso but then fans out at her waist like a delicate flower. Somehow, she notices him and turns her sparkling green eyes to him and waves excitedly.

He swallows a lump in his throat and realizes for the first time that his best friend is growing up. She's two years younger than him but only at the age of fifteen she already has the beauty of a mature woman.

"Hey, Joshua," Alyssa greets cheerfully while popping a cheese cube into her mouth.

"Erm…uh, hello," Joshua stutters in reply, rubbing the back of his head as he tries to push away his sudden vertigo.

"Are you okay?" Alyssa asks, her eyebrows furrowing together and creasing her flawless skin.

"Yeah, let's go sit down, okay?"

Soon Naomi, Little Guy, Gabe, Lisa, and Tomoe join Joshua and Alyssa. They only chat for a few minutes before Naomi and Alyssa go off to chat with an aging man that Joshua is unfamiliar with and Lisa heads for the bathroom.

"Hey, Dad?" the teenager asks in a whisper while his eyes follow Alyssa as she gracefully moves across the floor. "Do you think there is something…_different_ about Alyssa?"

Through a mouthful of food, Gabe follows his son's gaze and then shrugs. "Not really," he grumbles and takes a gulp of beer to clear his throat. Coughing, he asks in a more coherent manner, "Why do you ask?"

"I don't know," Joshua replies, dumbfounded. Curious, Gabe averts his keen gaze to his son's eyes and stares at them for only ten seconds before he exclaims,

"Oh. My. God. You like her!"

"Dad!" Joshua snaps, blushing under the confused gazes a few people are sending. "I do not," he protests in a whisper but Gabe only huffs and crosses his arms.

"Have you not heard the nurses gossiping? Aside from the rumors of Little Guy and Naomi, you and Alyssa are the second biggest 'couple' they talk about," he states while rolling his ochre eyes.

"Are you serious?" Joshua gasps, exasperated, and Gabe nods.

"I'm sorry," Tomoe's sweet, tentative voice interrupts their conversation as she stands beside the pair. She's wearing a lovely red kimono with her black hair flowing around her as light as air. Holding her hands in front of her, she confesses, "I couldn't help but overhear…. Joshua, are you planning on dating Alyssa?"

"What?" The teenager blurts out, stunned before glaring daggers at his dad who just smirks at him.

"Wait, really!" Maria's excited voice pops up from behind Joshua, making him flinch and almost fall off of his chair.

"Nice dress, Maria," Gabe teases with a chuckle and everybody turns to look at the tanned, short haired woman in a simple black dress and heals.

"Shut up, moron," she snaps, her forest green eyes showing hatred towards Gabe but softening up when she looks at Joshua's burning face. Hands on her hips, she smiles wickedly and clarifies, "So you're asking out Alyssa? It's about damn time."

"No, I'm not," Joshua retorts but it doesn't stop Hank and CR-S01 from hearing, both of who are in sleek tuxedos.

"That is a great idea, Joshua, I am sure she will say yes," Hank encourages with a friendly smile and CR just nods.

Joshua sighs and repeats, "I'm not asking her out, guys."

"But you should!" Maria snaps and Tomoe nods in agreement.

"I have a few things you might want to hear before you ask her out though," the young Japanese woman states, oblivious to the pleading look Joshua sends his father.

"Sorry, kid," Gabe chuckles with his crooked grin as Tomoe begins her explanation.

"Naomi comes from a very traditional Japanese town," she says in a matter-of-fact manner. "You must act for permission to date Alyssa before you actually do so. If not then you will be shunned from the Kimishima household."

"Um, Tomoe?" Hank steps in with a gentle tone. "I don't think Dr. Kimishima is really that traditional."

"No, wait," Maria interrupts, musing to herself mostly. "Remember Dillon? He asked Alyssa out on a date but Naomi wouldn't let her go because he didn't ask for permission."

"Oh yeah, I do remember that," Joshua agrees and, feeling the heat rushing to his face, inquires hesitantly, "So…Tomoe…what would I have to do in order to get her approval?"

"You must show great honor, courage, and wisdom," She states proudly.

"Look, Naomi likes you so just go and ask her," Gabe ventures, clapping his son on the back.

"But what if she says no?" Joshua whispers for only his father to hear as he stares at the ground.

Leaning forward, Gabe whispers in his ear, "No matter what happens, if you ask her I'll stop smoking for a week."

Joshua blinks in surprise and looks to his dad with wide eyes. "Are you even capable of doing that?" He questions suspiciously and Gabe rolls his eyes.

"I've been decreasing my amount of cigarettes for a while now, I can handle it just fine."

With a deep, shaky breath, Joshua stands on his feet and prays his knees won't give out. "Alright, I'll go ask," he decides with a sigh.

"Yea!" Maria cheers, giving him a punch to the shoulder that almost topples him over.

"You can do it, Joshua," Hank encourages while Joshua begins making his way towards Naomi who is standing across the field of tables chatting with Little Guy.

"But there is still so much more you need to know!" Tomoe exclaims but Gabe grabs her from behind and puts a hand over her mouth.

"The path of honor doesn't apply to my son," Gabe informs her as she wiggles out of his grip and stares at the man in shock.

"Hey, what's with all the excitement?" Lisa wonders upon approaching the group of doctors who are now huddled together and watching Joshua as he talks to Naomi.

"Hello, Dr. Kimishima…hello, Little Guy," The young man greets with a forced, nervous smile.

Little Guy and Naomi nod in greeting, their piercing gazes making Joshua's heart pound in his head.

"I believe Alyssa was just asked to dance if you're looking for her," Naomi says with a small smile of amusement. Every time there is a banquet for the doctors and Alyssa comes there is always a man who asks her to dance. Joshua usually has to distract the person so that she can get away from him.

"A-actually…doctor, I-I came to talk to you," he stammers out before glancing at Little Guy and adds, "Privately."

Little Guy's gray eyes show confusion and skepticism but with one look from Naomi he's walking away, leaving the two alone.

Turning her cobalt eyes back to him, she inquires with a hint of curiosity, "How can I help you?"

Joshua swallows the lump in his throat but, before he speaks, glances over his shoulders to see Gabe, Lisa, Maria, Tomoe, Hank, and CR staring at him from across the room. They give him the thumbs up and, with very little confidence, he turns back around and practically blurts out, "I'd like to take Alyssa out on a date."

Frozen with fear, Joshua cannot take his gaze away from Naomi's calculating one. Heart pounding and blood rushing through his head, he stammers out, "That is…if she wants to. I-I promise to drive safely and get her home before curfew and…um, I'll respect her and – "

"Who told you to ask for my permission first?" Naomi cuts in with a tiny smile on her rosy lips. Joshua cannot tell if she's smirking or filled with joy at his proposal.

"Err…Tomoe," he admits and she nods as if she has been expecting that.

"What do you plan on doing for your possible date?"

Joshua swallows nervously and confesses shakily, "Well…I hadn't really thought of that. Anything she'd like to do actually…or what you approve of."

There is a tense moment of silence between the two before Naomi crosses her arms and her mouth pulls up into a genuine smile. In a comforting tone, she advises, "You can start by saving Alyssa from that man – he's a horrible dancer – and then ask her if she'd be willing to go out with you. If the answer is yes, then think of something to do and offer the idea to me. That is all."

Feeling his heart lifting in glee, Joshua grins at her and says eagerly, "Thank you, Dr. Kimishima." He's about to turn away when Naomi adds one last thing.

"By the way, Joshua, don't be so nervous. I'm positive she'll say yes."

The teenager turns around to see a knowing look in the doctor's eyes and he cannot help but send her one last smile before rushing back over to his parents and the others.

"She said yes," Joshua announces proudly and the small group erupts into cheers.

"See, no sweat," Gabe boasts while Lisa gives her son a quick hug.

"Thanks…have you seen Alyssa?" He muses, looking around the dance floor.

"She's over there," CR instructs in his quiet yet deep voice, pointing towards a pretty girl being twirled around and around by a balding man with a beer belly.

"Now might be a good time to save her, eh buddy?" Gabe ventures, nudging his son in the stomach and, feeling confident with Naomi's words, Joshua strides across the dance floor towards them.

"Excuse me, sir," Joshua says while tapping on the man's shoulder. The spinning couple comes to a stop and he asks politely, "May I cut in?"

The man reluctantly agrees and shuffles away while Alyssa sends her friend a grateful look.

"Thank God you're here," she whispers, placing her hands on his shoulders and resting her head against his chest in exhaustion. Feeling his heart pounding in his ears – almost to the tempo of the beautiful classical music – he puts his hands on her waist.

"You looked miserable," Joshua whispers in her ear, earning a chuckle out of her.

"I was. Thank you for saving me!" she chirps, tilting her head back so she can send him a grateful smile.

Feeling the gaze of his support group burning into him, he looks over and sees them all staring at him and Alyssa.

She follows his stare and just laughs a tinkling laugh. "Let's go somewhere else…away from creeping doctors," she offers, taking his hand and leading him through the crowd and out into the courtyard.

It's a small rectangular area filled with bushy plants and delicate, colorful flowers. Past the gothic architecture is the city of Portland with its lights illuminating the sky like stars. The cool summer air is refreshing to Joshua's burning face and it isn't till now that he realizes how hot it was inside.

Alyssa lets go of his hand and sits down on one of the stone benches beside a cluster of tall sunflowers that sway in the breeze.

"These shoes are a killer," she mumbles to herself while pulling off a pair of silver high heels. Sitting beside her, Joshua watches as he slips her toes into the grass and listens to her sweet giggle as the blades tickle her smooth feet.

To Joshua's surprise yet utter joy, Alyssa leans into him and rests her head against his shoulder. His heart skips a beat and he struggles to remain perfectly still while he admires the soft glow that the moonlight gives her skin. They can still hear the din of the people and music from inside but, out here, the coolness of the courtyard gives the place an ethereal atmosphere.

"It reminds me of those stories I loved when I was little," Alyssa suddenly whispers, blinking her eyes open and gazing at the gothic wall surrounding the garden.

Joshua nods and snuggles his face into her sweet smelling russet hair. "I think I know which one you're talking about," he says calmly even though his stomach is twisted in knots. "It's very vague but I remember seeing a picture…"

"_The Lost Princess_," Alyssa breathes shakily as an old memory hits her, which makes her realize how close her best friend is to her right now.

"Mmm, what was that about again?" Joshua wonders aloud, moving his head away from Alyssa's and staring at the garden around them.

"It's about a princess who gets kidnapped and a handsome hero saves her but leaves her in the end because he has to go help others," she rushes out in one breath, fully aware of how warm Joshua's body is. "She finds him leaving her in the courtyard…very similar to this one I suppose."

"Sounds familiar," the teenage boy admits but there is still confusion evident in his tone.

"Do you remember reading it to me?" Alyssa asks, turning around and looking into his amber eyes with her nervous gaze.

"I remember reading stories to you but not really that one in particular," he confesses, honestly having a very vague recollection of the time.

Averting her gaze, she says in such a soft tone that he can barely hear it, "Are you sure? It was the day you got discharged from the hospital…. You also kissed me."

At this Joshua's eyes grow wide and he suddenly recalls everything that happened that day. He had been so worried over Alyssa's welfare, and then she was so sad that he was leaving…how could he have forgotten? Especially with his newfound feelings…

"Y-yeah, I do remember now," he murmurs and the two lock eyes.

Suddenly, Alyssa smiles and recites with her emerald eyes sparkling, "Where are you going, my love?"

Joshua instantly chuckles as his friend holds a hand up to her forehead and sighs dramatically. In the same playful manner, he responds through his laughter, "I cannot stay, princess. I have saved you and now others need me."

Alyssa stands up and leans against a tree beside the bench. Staring up at the moon as the leaves dance in the warm breeze, she recites fervently, "But I love you and you love me. Stay with me, my hero, and we shall love and grow old together in peace."

Smiling at her words, Joshua stands up and stands before her. "I cannot," he whispers, suddenly feeling a whole new emotion wash over him when he looks into her gorgeous emerald eyes. Placing a hand on her cheek, the breath hitches in her throat and, taking a step closer to her, he breathes, "Do not worry though, my beautiful princess, for one day we shall be together again."

Alyssa's heart is pounding and her throat has run dry. She can barely form words but her desire to say the final lines shows through and, in a voice softer than the breeze, she asks, "Can you promise me that? Promise me you'll return. Swear by it…with a kiss."

The next few moments move slowly for the both of them even though it happens in only a few seconds. Joshua's face leans closer towards her, his bushy green bangs tickling her forehead as his hand runs through her hair to the back of her head. His fingers are the only things separating her from the hard bark of the tree, and only an inch separates their faces.

Her body shudders and her heart skips a beat the second his lips gently skim hers. She feels herself going back those seven years. She remembers the tremendous pain she was feeling that day and how his gentle kiss gave her the strength and warmth to make it through.

His lips hover on hers as her hands gingerly wrap around his neck. Eyes closed, she gently moves with his mouth until he manages to fully press his lips against hers and she finds her body rising with the tender, intoxicating kiss.

The heat that had run through them hovers inside them like a flickering flame as Joshua slowly moves his mouth away from hers. She blinks her bleary eyes open only to find a crooked grin plastered to his face and his amber eyes sparkling like gold.

"I promised to return, didn't I?"

* * *

"Hey! I paid for those!" Gabe yells while his son throws a pack of cigarettes into the dumpster.

"You promised to quit smoking for a week," Joshua replies calmly. "Besides, Cunninghams never break promises."

"What?" Gabe gawks. "Cunninghams _always_ break their promises!"

"Well…I don't," Joshua retorts, smiling to himself at the mesmerizing event that transpired only a few days ago.

"This deal was bogus from the start. You get a date and I get nothing but mutiny!" Gabe grumbles as he turns away from his son and exits the shadowy alley into the bright sunlight.

"But it gave me another reason to ask her out!" Joshua calls in hopes to cheer up his dad, running after him as Gabe rapidly walks towards Resurgam.

"And now that you're happy can I get my cigarettes back?"

"No."

"Damn it!"


	6. Always Growing

Always Growing

At the age of thirteen Joshua is growing. Not just physically, but mentally too. He has always been a bit philosophical and, even when he was young, and he had worried about becoming a man without a father figure to follow. Thankfully, Gabe came into his life and, as of late, he's been observing how his father acts. Ever since they reunited he's been striving to be like him: humorous, witty, clever, and a pure genius. Joshua will admit that his father isn't the nicest guy, but people seem to like him nevertheless and what better person to idolize than a father?

These very thoughts are clouding the boy's mind as he shoves his backpack against a mass of papers and forces it into his locker. As he struggles to close it, a girl two years younger than him but only a grade below walks up with a skip in her step.

"Hey, Joshua!" She chirps. Her emerald eyes are sparkling and a wide smile spreads across her pale face.

"Err, hey, Alyssa," he grunts and releases a relieved sigh once he finally manages to shut his locker door. Picking up a stack of folders and notebooks from the tiled floor, he asks casually, "What's up?"

"Not much," she replies but the excitement in her voice is too thick for it to be nothing. Unconvinced, Joshua straightens up and quirks an eyebrow at her.

"Really?" He insists with a knowing tone.

Giggling, Alyssa practically blurts out, "I think Little Guy might ask N'omi out on a date soon!"

Joshua smiles and holds back a chuckle when she mispronounces her adoptive mother's name. "That's great," he agrees with polite enthusiasm. "It's about time he made a move."

Alyssa nods eagerly and her russet hair flies around her shoulders as she does so. Clapping her hands together, she eagerly wonders aloud, "What if they get married?"

"Let's not rush anything," Joshua warns light heartedly but it doesn't seem to dull the girl's childish dreams. Before she can respond, however, somebody grabs Joshua's arm and yanks him backward. The green haired boy falls to the ground with a yelp as his folders fly away, effectively spilling papers across the floor.

"Yo, Alyssa!" A new voice yells and Joshua instantly recognizes it to belong to his rival, Cooper. He's about three inches shorter than Joshua but twenty times meaner and more cynical than his father. He has a square jaws and beady brown eyes that only ever express bitterness.

Cooper's almost the complete opposite of Joshua except for one detail. Neither of them had known their fathers through out their lives; that is, until Joshua reunited with Gabe. Up until that point Cooper had completely ignored him, though for the past three years he has been trying to make the innocent boy's life hell.

"Joshua, are you okay?" Alyssa frets and steps towards her friend, but she is stopped by Cooper's large arm holding her back.

With a wry grin, Cooper responds in his rarely shown excited tone, "He'll be fine. Hey, I heard you got blown up! That's awesome! Was it cool?"

Alyssa gasps and pain flashes in her emerald eyes. Swallowing a lump in her throat, she answers quietly, "Not at all."

"Bah, if I got blown up I totally could of handled it," he boasts and Alyssa can only glare at him as her hands ball into fists.

"It's could _have_," Joshua mumbles from behind the other boy, intending for the comment to be for himself but it's overheard. By now he has gathered his papers though, upon catching his words, Cooper spins around and nocks the folder out of his hands again.

"What did you say?" He snaps while Joshua feels heat rush through his face. His ochre eye burn with rage as they scan the field of papers as if it is a field of corpses.

Frustrated, he replies dryly, "You said 'could _of_' but the grammatically correct way is 'could _have_'."

"Nobody asked you, nerd!" Cooper retorts as he pushes Joshua's shoulders, making the green haired boy stumble back.

Turning around, Cooper grins at Alyssa, who is currently fuming and wondering the best way of attack. "So what was it like being blown up?" He questions with an evil smirk and she has to take a few deep breaths in order not to punch him there and then. Naomi always said controlling your emotions is the best way to succeed.

"I'd rather not talk about it," she mutters through gritted teeth but Cooper just laughs.

"Come on, tell me!" He urges forcefully.

As Joshua walks back towards the two, something inside him is beginning to snap. The blood rushes through his head and his heart pounds against his chest. He suddenly remembers his dad punching a drunken man who had tried flirting with his mom once. His mother had been incensed but Joshua found the whole ordeal impressive. The ease and power that his father had in that one punch was astounding yet, knowing better, Joshua keeps his hands by his side as he cuts into the conversation strongly, "She said she didn't want to talk about it."

Cooper spins around again and, with rage dancing in his eyes like fire, he shoves Joshua into a locker.

"I told you to shut up, nerd!" He orders with loathing.

"Stop it!" Alyssa protests, grabbing Cooper's arm but her frail body is shoved away like a fly and she falls to the ground.

By now the hallway is full of passing students who stop and stare at the action. They all know they should help in someway but their fascination with the exciting event has them dumbfounded.

"Don't touch her!" Joshua suddenly yells with newfound vigor as he shoves Cooper's hands off of him.

With nothing more than a grunt, Cooper pushes Joshua back into the locker. Pain stings the back of the green haired boy's head but it is nothing compared to the sudden rush of adrenaline and fury he feels coursing through him like electricity. Without another thought and in blind rage, Joshua's fist soars through the air and nails Cooper's cheek with so much force that it sends the bully stumbling backwards.

Tripping over his own feet, Cooper falls to the ground but he's up in seconds. Like a charging bull, he throws his body at Joshua's and throws a few punches at his stomach. Joshua manages to block his abdomen with his hands and kicks at his attacker. It lasts for only a second before a strident voice cuts through the air and shouts, "Stop this!"

Of course simple words won't restrain the boys from thrashing at each other. The woman, who just so happens to be the principal, easily slips Joshua away by gripping his hair and pulling him back. He shimmers down a bit as he watches Cooper get caught in the arms of three teachers, cursing all the while.

"You three!" The principal orders, exasperated, and passing her wild gaze over Joshua, Cooper, and Alyssa. "My office NOW!"

* * *

Strolling down one of the many hallways in Resurgam First Care, Gabe quickly lights a cigarette and pops it into his mouth. The drug calms his frustration towards his latest patient in seconds. He hasn't had somebody that annoying in a while and, to his bitter realization, the old fool got to him with his obnoxious idiocy.

He soon finds himself sitting in one of the many tables in the break room and relaxes with his cigarette. After a few minutes, he finds himself calmed down and has regained his composure. His respite is short lived, though, when RONI's robotic voice chimes in his earpiece,

"Dr. Cunningham, you have a phone call," the robot states simply and Gabe only groans.

"I don't answer those, RONI," he replies dryly. "How many times do I have to tell you?"

"So far you have told me thirty two times," she responds instantly.

"For a robot made for diagnostics, you're pretty bad at picking up hints," he grumbles irritably.

"Doctor, the phone is ringing again. Lisa Cunningham is calling you."

"Damn it, RONI! Why didn't you say so before?" Gabe groans before pushing himself out of his seat and rapidly returns to his office. "Now she is going to be pissed at me for not answering!" He adds with growing frustration.

"Shall I tell her –,"

"No, RONI, just shut up," Gabe huffs as he marches into his office and picks up the phone on its last ring.

"Hello?" He greets, trying to use a nicer tone but his aggravation shows.

"Hey, Gabe," Lisa replies in a softer, tired voice. Getting straight to the point, she explains quickly, "I'm coming over to drop Joshua off at your office because I have to go back to work."

"What? But it's only nine in the morning…shouldn't he be in school?" Gabe muses.

With a sigh, Lisa continues in a strained voice, "Yes, but Joshua has to leave early because he…well, he got into a fight."

"WHAT?" Gabe gawks. He has tremendous difficulty imagining his son as anything but gentle.

"Yes, he has an in-school suspension for the next two days and – okay, I'm outside. Joshua is heading in now. Talk to you later," she finishes the call quickly in a defeated voice, leaving Gabe dumbfounded and more frustrated than before.

* * *

As Joshua walks towards the lounge where his dad is supposed to meet him, shame builds up inside of him. He knows what he did was wrong but is it really? He was only trying to defend his friend, and surely Gabe will be proud of that. Joshua hadn't regretted anything until he saw the disappointed gaze of his favorite teacher and the surprised, fearful look of his mother. He remembers the teacher's words so well that it's as if she is saying them right now, "I expected this from him, Joshua, but not from you…never from you."

And as he strolls into the lounge another pang of guilt hits him. He never wanted anybody to worry about him and he especially never wanted anybody to be ashamed of him. The only comforting thought he has is that his father will be sure to understand.

Oh how wrong he is.

All of his favorite doctors – Hank, Tomoe, Maria, and CR-S01 – are in the corner of the room casually chatting with each other. The best one to him, however, is sitting in a chair at one of the wobbly tables. His fingers drum against the plastic top anxiously and his piercing ochre eyes snap to Joshua as soon as he steps inside.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Gabe yells instantly and shoots up from his chair to his full height. The other doctors in the room fall silent and turn to stare at the furious man. Fuming, he goes on in a powerful tone, "You can't go running around punching people! That's idiotic!"

Joshua is utterly stunned by his father's fury, but a sense of betrayal and shame quickly destroys his shock. His eyes grow wide as he stutters in a desperate tone, "I-I was only defending Alyssa. Cooper's the one who –"

"I don't care what he did!" Gabe cuts in bitterly, his amber eyes flaring. "No matter what you do you never fight!"

"But, Dad!" Joshua protests. "You're always telling me to defend myself and others by any means possible! And now you're saying that I shouldn't?"

"Fighting won't solve anything!" Gabe retorts and now familiar emotion begins bubbling inside Joshua again. Guilt and remorse are nothing compared to the anger he feels against himself for failing everybody that believed in him, but now a bit of that fury is being directed towards his father for his hypocrisy.

"I thought you would understand!" Joshua blurts out and his breathing becomes heavy. "You're always fighting – always arguing – and now you are telling me not too? That's a contradiction!"

"You know very well that you shouldn't be fighting _anybody_," Gabe shoots back while stepping closer to his son. The crowd behind him is stunned to silence and cannot take their eyes off of the horrifying scene.

"I'm already being punished enough by the school, so just leave me alone, okay?" Joshua insists, running a hand through his bushy green hair and releasing a frustrated sigh.

"What kind of father would I be if I just let you off that easily?" Gabe retorts and his words are like bombs that break a dam in Joshua's mind. With his inner wall annihilated, bottled up fury and sorrow pours out uncontrollably.

Blood rushing through his head and eyes stinging with oncoming tears, Joshua shouts back in blind fury, "What kind of father! What kind of father abandons his family for ten years? What kind of father leaves his wife confused and betrayed, crying herself to sleep at night, and a son who doesn't have a clue as to what to do? Don't talk to me about morals when you have none of your own!"

His words are like fighter planes that pierce right through Gabe and leaves him in stunned silence. Hot tears spill down Joshua's reddening face as he spins around and dashes from the room.

Gabe is too shocked to moves. His mouth hangs open and his eyes are wide, but Maria is quick to react. "Joshua, wait!" She calls desperately and goes to run after him but his held back when Tomoe grabs her arm.

The green eyed EMT turns her furious gaze to Gabe and she scolds hotly, "What the hell were you thinking?"

"Maria," Tomoe warns softly while gently tugging on the EMT's jacket.

"What?" Maria snaps and turns to see the calming purple gaze of the sweet woman.

"Are you okay, Gabriel?" Hank questions in his usual friendly tone and rests a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine," he replies a little too quickly. Then, with a sigh, he admits in a quiet voice, "I just had no idea he…felt that way. I thought we were fine…"

"I'm not entirely positive, but I believe it would be a good idea if you were to go after him," CR joins the conversation in his soft, lucid voice. Everybody turns to the timid surgeon and Gabe nods.

"You're probably right…oh damn it, I need to fix this!" He grumbles to himself before he bolts out of the room and sprints down the hallway.

"RONI!" Gabe shouts into his earpiece as he turns a corner and barely dodges Darnell. "Where is Joshua now?"

"Please specify which Joshua you want to locate," the robotic voice responds in his ear.

"My Joshua! My son! Who else?" Gabe snaps.

"There are currently eleven people in this hospital that go by the name Joshua and approximately 670,976 people in the world are named Joshua -,"

"So where is he?" Gabe cuts her off and his hands grow sweaty as he tries to push his son's painfully truthful words out of his mind.

"He is at the front entrance…and has just departed Resurgam."

"He left Resurgam?" Gabe gasps, turning around another corridor and he heads down a flight of stairs. "Where is he going now?"

"I'm sorry, Doctor, but my cameras do not branch outside of their designated area."

Gabe releases a shaky breath and sprints down the hallway. Where could Joshua be headed? Why hadn't he ever mentioned his feelings before now?

The troubled doctor soon finds himself running through the pouring rain, splashing through puddles as he cranes his head around for any sign of Joshua. On instinct he starts running away from the hospital and towards the city.

Resurgam is only somewhat secluded from the busy metropolis and, after only a minute of running, Gabe finds himself in one of the most hectic parts of town. The street is packed with immobile cars, all of which are honking (as if blasting an obnoxious noise will magically solve your problems), and people wander in clumps on the narrow sidewalk. The flustered doctor stops there and cranes his neck around in a futile attempt to spot his son in the throng.

After a few moments of frantic terror and guilt wracking his brain, Gabe snatches his cell phone and hits a speed dial number.

"Hank, it's me," Gabe greets the caller with a dismal tone.

"Did you find him?" The gentle man on the line asks.

"No," Gabe sighs. "He left the hospital and I have no idea where he could have gone. I'm going to keep looking for him. Call Naomi, Esha, and anybody else who might have a chance of seeing him."

"What about Lisa?"

"Yeah, call her too," he decides dreadfully. "No doubt she's going to be pissed when she finds out I lost our son."

"Don't worry, Gabriel, we'll find him," Hank comforts and Gabe can only sigh in response.

"Thanks. Call me if anything important happens."

* * *

Three hours later and Gabe is on his way back from scouring the streets for his son. His clothes hang heavily on his weary body and his shoes are flooded with water, sloshing with each step he takes. Water drips from his drenched hair and into his eyes but it doesn't bother him that much. All he feels is guilt and anger towards himself. Not only does he make his son run away from him, but now he can't even find him and doesn't have a clue as to where he can be.

He walks through the automatic doors of Resurgam, feeling a bit of warmth wrap around his numbing body. There are a few people in the lobby but he only recognizes one face. Her deep brown eyes are filled with worry and are a bit watery as she gazes at him. With a shake of his head her gaze falls back down to the floor and she buries her face in her hands.

"He'll be okay, Lisa," Gabe tries to soothe his wife while rubbing her shoulder. "He's a smart boy."

"Y-yes but like you," she stammers out, wiping her eyes. "Y-you two always lose sense when you're irritated."

"He'll be okay," Gabe repeats, ignoring the small insult she sent his way, and wipes a tear on her cheek with his thumb.

Lisa swallows a lump in her throat and takes out her cell phone for the thousandth time that day. She dials Joshua's cell phone number again and they listen to the continuous ring until it goes to machine and she snaps the phone shut.

"What's the point of getting him a phone if he never uses it," she mumbles touchily, shoving the item back into her pocket.

"Where is everybody else?" Gabe questions as he sits next to her.

With a deep breath, she explains in a shaky voice, "Hank said he's going to look all over the city – literally – and I told him that he could only do that if he were to fly but he heard nothing of it. Maria took a left out of here on her motorcycle and Tomoe and Hanzo took a right. Naomi and Little Guy are checking the upper part of town and they left Alyssa home in case Joshua decides to go there. A-and I've been waiting here for him but he hasn't come…and you're soaking wet."

She mentions the last part with a bit of guilt, noticing his drenched appearance for the first time; his green hair is plastered to his head and water drips down his cheeks and nose.

"Where's the kid?" Gabe questions and ignores her statement.

"You mean CR? Holden is taking him back to his cell now…" Lisa trails off. Her voice becomes more serious as she looks at Gabe with calculating eyes and asks, "Gabe…why did you yell at him?"

"Because he got into a fight, so I had to yell at him," Gabe explains instantly as if it is obvious.

"You yelled at him because you think that's what a typical father should do," Lisa clarifies and, under her powerful stare, Gabe sighs in agreement.

She shakes her head and rubs her temple as she responds in an exhausted tone, "Parents are supposed to punish their kid if they did something wrong, but only if the child doesn't feel guilty for his bad act. Joshua was punished enough at school, and when he comes home it's up to us to make him feel better and let him know that we love him no matter what. I know you were just trying to be a good dad, but sometimes being a good dad means saying nothing at all."

Gabe doesn't move for a moment and just lets the words sink in. After a few seconds, he takes a deep breath and sits down in one of the plastic chairs. He rubs his tired and soaked face, pulling at his skin with his large hands. Leaning forward, he rests his elbows against his knees and shoves his hands into his tangled hair. "Shit," he grumbles with exhaustion evident in his tone. "I messed it up big time."

* * *

The relentless rain drums against the window shield as Holden and CR sit in a traffic jam in one of the many city streets. As usual, the two are dead silent with Holden driving the car, his eyes never leaving the road, and CR sitting in the back seat with his hands chained together. For the first time ever, the doctor speaks to Holden inside of this sleek black car.

"Do you think Joshua is okay?" he asks in his soft, deep voice.

Holden is quiet for a moment. He glances at the passenger through his rear view mirror and sees the young doctor deep in thought. His wispy black hair covers his crimson eyes as he stares out the window. While shifting his weight in his seat, he responds in his gruff voice, "Probably. He's a smart kid."

CR just nods as he gazes at a small park to his right. A brick walkway cuts through the square of grass and lines of pine trees border the path like a fence. Nobody is in the tiny park except for a boy huddled up against the trunk of a tree. CR then stares intently through his fog filled window at the child. Bushy green hair. That's all he needs to see.

"I found Joshua," CR states simply as if it is no big deal and Holden turns around to look at the prisoner with a cocked eyebrow. Following his gaze, the agent sees Joshua as well and instantly begins pulling over to the side of the road, cutting off a driver in the process and earning himself the finger.

"We'll take him back," Holden decides once they have come to the edge and he begins unbuckling his seatbelt.

"Wait," CR suddenly commands quietly. Holden freezes and, though his eyes are hidden behind dark sunglasses, the young doctor can feel his intense and puzzled stare on him. "I want to talk to him…can I?" CR adds tentatively.

Holden knows that CR isn't evil in anyway – he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time – but his job would forbid him to let a criminal talk to a child privately. Things have changed drastically since the two first met though. Not only do they have a better understanding of one another, but also Holden is starting to ease up his constant tension. Despite his better judgment, he finds himself agreeing and unlocks the back door. Still hand cuffed, CR exits the car and begins walking across the muddy ground, the grass making a slurping noise with every step he takes, as he heads towards the boy. The rain drenches his unruly black hair and wind tears at his lab coat.

The boy doesn't notice the approaching doctor until he sits down beside him. CR is completely silent as Joshua stares at him with frightened ochre eyes. His entire body is drenched and his soaked hair is plastered to his face. His clothes cling to his body and his thin arms are wrapped around his legs that are brought up to his chest. CR, on the other hand, just watches the rain fall around them and the cars slowly inch forward along the road. The water is seeps into his pants as he stretches his long legs out in front of him and leans back against the tree trunk, and then he becomes still. To Joshua he is a statute. His face is free of expression and bumps and he'd be inert if it weren't for the wind playing with his stringy black hair and the intensity in his crimson eyes.

After a few seconds of silence, the doctor says casually as he continues to stare straight ahead, "It's bad for your health to stay out here in the rain. You could catch pneumonia."

Joshua only frowns and places his chin on his knees. Watching the rain too, he replies glumly in a quiet voice, "I'm lost."

CR turns his red gaze to the boy but Joshua refuses to meet his gaze.

"Dr. Cunningham – I mean your father – is very worried about you," CR tells him in his soft tone but the mention of the green haired doctor causes Joshua to frown more.

"He never wanted me. He hates me," the boy sighs and watches as a squirrel rushes through the soaked grass and up a nearby tree to hide from the downpour.

"Not at all," CR shakes his head. "He's been searching for you ever since you left."

"He wouldn't have yelled at me if he didn't hate me," Joshua protests in a dejected and stubborn tone.

"You're right, he shouldn't have scolded you," CR agrees in a calm voice and Joshua sends him a surprised look; he wasn't expecting the doctor to agree. With his piercing crimson gaze fixed on the boy and water dripping from his black hair, CR explains, "As children we like to think our parents are perfect - that they cannot make mistakes - but they are flawed. You are probably already aware of this because your father made the mistake of leaving you and your mother, but you have forgiven him for that so you can forgive him of this."

Joshua shakes his head and rests his chin back on his knees. He takes a deep breath and confesses in a murmur, "I don't know if I do forgive him for leaving. I thought I did but I guess there…there is still a part of me that's hurt by his abandonment…"

CR nods in understanding and adds in his still lucid voice, "Nobody is perfect, Joshua, so you are bound to argue with even the people closest to you. You might never truly forgive him but at least you know he's trying to make up for the years he's missed. And that proves he loves you more than anything else."

It's now that an immense amount of gratitude and respect grows inside of Joshua. CR has always been the quiet doctor in the corner that most of his colleagues – mainly his dad and Maria – tease. CR doesn't seem to mind, but Joshua is sure that there must be days when he is tired of their playful remarks. It's one thing to hear the doctor talk more than a few words, but it's another to actually speak to a stranger on such heavy topics.

For the first time today, Joshua sends the doctor a tiny, u-shaped smile. CR has never seen such a sweet smile on his father and it almost shocks him to see somebody with such a resemblance appear that compassionate.

"Has your father ever made a mistake like this?" Joshua asks with less sorrow in his huge amber eyes.

"Not exactly…" CR admits. With a deep breath, he explains, "My father killed a lot of people and then framed me for it, so I got a 250-year sentence."

Joshua's mouth falls open as he stares at the doctor with wide eyes. "A-and you f-f-forgive him for that?" He gawks while blinking rapidly, as if the action will get the stunned look out of his face.

"He wasn't in his right mind when he did it and he's my father. I'm not angry with him," CR replies simply as if it's a universal feeling.

"Not even a little?"

"Maybe in the deep part of my brain, like you are with your father."

"Wow," Joshua marvels as he gazes at the doctor with awe. "My problem seems tiny compared to yours."

"No, yours is still important," CR responds as he wipes a strand of wet hair out of his eyes. "We should be getting back though."

Joshua nods and grins at the prisoner again. "Thanks, Doctor," he says kindly as they push themselves off the muddy ground and begin heading back to the car. "By the way," Joshua adds. "I think you just perfected smiling."

CR blinks twice in surprise at the boy's words. He had no idea he had been smiling until the subject was brought up and, as they enter the back of the car, he cannot help but smile more. Finally, his practice has paid off.

* * *

In the twenty minutes that it takes CR, Holden, and Joshua to return all the doctors come back empty handed and dismal. Lisa is about to call the police when the double doors slide open and three males walk in, two of who are drenched and their shoes squeak with each step they take.

"Joshua!" Lisa cries out instantly, rushing to her son and encasing him in a bone-crushing hug. Rubbing the back of his head, she whispers, "I was so worried about you."

Wrapping his arms around her, he replies back with guilt lacing his voice, "I'm really sorry. I never wanted you to worry."

A chuckle escapes his mother's lips as she wipes his wet bangs out of his eyes. Smiling, she tells him lovingly, "You sweet, sweet boy."

Heart still pounding as relief slowly fills his body, Gabe releases a shuddering breath. The other doctors around him are staring at the scene with the same amount of relaxation coming over them.

Looking past his mother's shoulder, Joshua and Gabe lock eyes. They don't see bitterness in each other and, needing to clear things up, the doctor claps his hands together and shouts, "Alright, nothing to see here people. Thanks for your help, it's much appreciated, but you can leave now."

Hank and Tomoe nod while Maria rolls her eyes but, understanding the need for privacy, they all leave the area. CR is about to leave with Holden but freezes when Gabe holds him back by his elbow.

"Thanks for finding him, kid," Gabe breathes sincerely. "I owe you one."

The surgeon only nods once before turning away and heading back out into the rain.

Gabe turns back around to find his wife still fussing over Joshua. "Where did you go? Were you hurt? Please tell me you weren't talking to any homeless people," she frets while struggling to fix his hair and he reassures her.

"It's fine, Mom, I can take care of myself," he says with a tiny smile and slyly unwinds himself from her hands.

"Well…alright, but promise me you will never run away again," she demands sternly while crossing her arms.

"I promise," Joshua agrees easily and a smile instantly spreads across her face. She then glances at Gabe and, with a secret message passed between them, she kisses her son's forehead. "I'll meet you at the car," she informs him before walking past Gabe and out into the rain.

Joshua turns around to face his father but he won't meet Gabe's gaze. His father, however, clears his throat and takes a few steps forward. He opens his mouth to speak but his son beats him to it.

"I'm so sorry," he blurts out with his ochre eyes still locked onto the floor. Guilt weighs down his voice as he continues, "I shouldn't have said those things. I was being stupid and senseless and…I'm sorry. I made a mistake."

Gabe shakes his head instantly and places his hands on Joshua's shoulders. The fact that he no longer has to kneel down to be at eye level makes him realize how much he's grown. Joshua's up to his chest now and it seems like he grows an inch everyday, but just because Gabe is a man doesn't mean he isn't still growing like his son. As he stares at Joshua, he realizes that he'll probably always be changing.

"You don't need to be sorry," Gabe tells him seriously. "Everything you said was true and I'm a dumb ass for leaving you and your mom. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if you still hated me."

"I don't hate you," Joshua instantly interjects and snaps his gaze up to meet his dad's.

Gabe sends him a crooked grin with his burnt out and soaked cigarette hanging out of his mouth. He ruffles his son's hair and attempts to use a lighter tone but a bit of regret is still evident when he mentions, "I should probably be a better role model, huh?"

Joshua sends him his tiny smile and replies, "It's okay. Even role models make mistakes. Besides, if you didn't then I could never use that against you to get me any movie of my choice."

The boy can't hold back his triumphant smirk as Gabe gawks at him for a moment. He quickly recovers though and starts laughing with both amusement and relief.

"God, kid," he rolls his eyes playfully while shoving his hands in his pocket. "If this keeps up then I'm going to be broke soon."

"You could always do my English homework," Joshua jibes back.

Gabe chuckles at even the thought. "Sorry, but you can never make me read some book about Amish people….well, a book in general. And what if _you_ make a mistake?"

Joshua taps his chin as he considers this. After a moment of deep pondering, he decides thoughtfully, "I can keep Maria off your back because she thinks I'm adorable, or I can keep Esha from harassing you about paper work by asking her awkward questions."

"Awkward questions?" Gabe echoes curiously. "What do you mean by that?"

"Where do babies come from? What does "rape" mean? You know, that stuff," Joshua says carelessly and his father chuckles again.

They begin to walk towards the exit as Gabe ruffles up his son's hair once again. "This is gonna be fun," he decides as the doors slide open and they return to the pouring rain. The water runs down their already soaked bodies as they splash through the puddles and run for the car in the distance.

The drive home is quiet and the event that transpired isn't mentioned again, because sometimes the best thing to say is to say nothing at all. And if that fails, then at least blackmail will always be available.


End file.
